Sometimes it takes an exiting veteran’s wisdom to see the true strengths of a team.

In a season filled with promise—but also a season ended too soon by injury—an outgoing captain described the Harvard track and field teams the best.

“We are a young team that will hopefully improve with age,” co-captain BreeAnna Gibson said. “It takes hard work and dedication to be a successful team in a sport that is usually looked on as an individual venture.”

All season long, Gibson, along with the other seniors on both the men’s and women’s teams, seemed almost as concerned with the developing talent on their squads as their own personal achievements—which were just as impressive as those of the underclassmen.

A number of athletes—ranging from first-year sprinters to junior long distance runners—made great strides toward developing into a team that could challenge the usual powers in the Ivies. Unfortunately for the Crimson, this season’s success was constantly hampered by nagging injuries to a number of key contributors.

At the climax of the winter season, Harvard took home fourth at Heptagonals on the backs of athletes who missed most of the rest of the year due to injury.

“What’s encouraging is that we did better indoors than the Harvard team last year which was without a doubt more talented and deeper,” co-captain Onyechi Ezekwueche said. “Now we have to focus on getting more people healthy, on board and scoring so that we can grab a more respectable finish at Heps outdoors.”

McLean-Foreman took home the gold in the 100-meter race with a time of 2:25.94, a full three seconds better than his qualifying time.

Along with junior Tekky Andrew-Jaja—who finished second in the high jump—McLean-Foreman qualified for the IC4As, but would not participate in that event. Both would struggle with injuries for the rest of the season and see very limited action in their respective events.

Also at indoor Heptagonals for the men, Laine and fellow sophomore Lawrence Adjah also began what would be an indoor and outdoor sweep of the Ivy League in the triple jump by capturing the top two spots for the Crimson.

For the women, the day was not quite as sweet, as they took home eighth at the competition. Gibson led the way by picking up fifth-place finishes in both the shot put and the weight throw.

Due to the large number of injuries during the indoor season, Harvard had only two representatives at the men’s indoor IC4As and another at the women’s ECAC championships.

Laine—a week off his victory at Heptagonals—finished 12th for the Crimson’s best performance, while sophomore Christopher Ware also cracked the top 15, finishing 13th in the shot put.

The almost monthlong break following the end of indoor season provided an important break for both Harvard teams to rest and heal.

Beginning with the Bayou Classic on March 26-27, Harvard focused its energy on invitationals and other meets, as opposed to the intra-Ivy League dual competitions that dominated the previous season.