MIHS athletes are thriving on the track and field scene
Published 3:30 pm Tuesday, April 14, 2026
As the track and field season rolled into its second month, a quartet of Mercer Island High School (MIHS) senior boys shone in the pole vault and running realms and bonded with their teammates along the way.
Teammates and coaches have been pushing the Islanders to succeed, they’re enjoying watching each other train and compete and they’re doing it all as friends.
“There are many serious runners on the team, and it helps having lots of people with the same level of discipline I have, so I can stay motivated,” said Matthew Lawrence, whose current top times are 1:58 in the 800-meter run, 4:15 in the 1600-meter run and 9:05 in the 3200-meter run.
Fellow runner Connor Ward also competes in the distance races and has notched personal records (PRs) this season in the 1600 in 4:24 and the 3200 in 9:28.
Sprinter Nicholas Castaneda nailed a major PR in the 200-meter run with a 22.67 (outdoing his previous top mark of 23.3) and a PR in the 100-meter run with an 11.12. He’s seeking to run a sub-11 race in the 100, he said.
Two-year captain Owen Clarkson has been making his mark in the pole vault realm this spring.
“Things have been going great for me this year. I spent a lot of time in the offseason lifting before vaulting indoors, and a lot of that work had started to pay off recently,” said Clarkson, who cleared a PR of 15 feet on April 8 to launch into a second-place tie in 3A and fifth-place standing in all classes. “The school record is 15-4, which I’ve had my eye on for a while, and I’m excited to be in a place where I have the opportunity to take shots at it.”
The Islanders will get more chances to achieve new PRs at upcoming meets on April 21 and 28 at home against Skyline and Issaquah, respectively, May 7 at Woodinville (also featuring Mount Si) and May 8 at the multi-school Liberty Twilight meet in Renton.
When asked what has been the key to his running success this season, Castaneda noted, “Staying positive and believing in myself that anything is possible.” When posed this question, Ward spotlighted the 3200 and said that accomplishments come with possessing “good mental and physical prep as well as strong motivation going into each race.”
For Lawrence, putting up solid marks starts during hard workouts by powering through pain and learning to manage it. “When the pain comes during a race, I am both physically and mentally prepared to push through it and run the best I can that day,” he said.
When discussing the mental event of pole vaulting, Clarkson said that in order for an athlete to thrive, “You can’t let your head spin over little mistakes, inconsistencies and failures, and place a lot of trust in both your coaches and yourself so you can vault with confidence instead of fear.”
