Derby Running Club

(This is Muz.) Congratulations to two of my Cross Country runners -- Sofia Rudus and Jayson Drayton – on their graduation last week from Derby High School. Both left an indelible mark on our program in different ways.

Jayson joined the DHS Cross Country Team for the first time last summer and fall after running track as a sprinter during his junior year. He decided to run cross country, in large part, to improve himself in track.

While many sprinters are unnecessarily apprehensive about running cross country because of the longer distances involved, Jayson demonstrated the benefits that usually follow a season of running cross country for a 400-meter runner. I hope more kids follow his example in the future.

As a junior in track, he generally ran in the 56- to 57.5-second range in the 400, and did not attempt running the 800 meters, let alone anything longer.

But this year in track was a different story. At the end of cross country season in late October, he ran a 2:18 time trial workout in the 800-meter run. He brought that time down to 2:13.63 at the NVL Indoor Track Championship in the 4 x 800 meter relay, and then cut that down further -- to about a 2:07 – during outdoor track.

As a result, Jayson, who earned All-Naugatuck Valley League 2nd Team honors in cross country, would gain All-NVL 1st Team recognition during outdoor track on the basis of being the lead-off runner for our league champion boys’ 4 x 800 relay team.

Throughout his senior year, I can’t recall a single instance where he complained about a workout. In fact, he often went above and beyond the norm with an admirable work ethic.

*****

Sofia paved a more traditional path in her running career, but one that was equally successful.

In her freshman season for DHS Cross Country, she earned All-Copper Division honors in the NVL Championship Meet. It marked the first of four consecutive years in which Sofia would earn a medal at the NVL meet, which is no easy feat. She was All-Copper as a sophomore, and then after the NVL replaced the all-division individual awards with an all-league 2nd team opportunity, Sofia raced to All-NVL 2nd Team laurels as a junior and senior.

As a junior, Sofia was part of a 4 x 800 meter relay team during indoor track that captured the league title. As a result, Sof and her teammates were recognized as All-NVL 1st Team honorees.

As a senior, she was part of the 4 x 800 relay team during outdoor season that captured the NVL crown. (Incidentally, it was the first time that the girls’ 4 x 800 team and the boys’ 4 x 800 team both won the outdoor league title in that event since 2015.) As a result, Sof was again named to the All-NVL 1st Team.

Throughout her career, Sof brought her happy-go-lucky personality to the program. She had a way of making her teammates smile and laugh, even during stressful situations. And for distance runners, who often have a Type A personality, keeping the stress level under wraps is quite valuable.

*****

Graduation is always both a happy and sad time. It’s sad because you know you are losing team members who have become like family over time. It’s happy because you know they are moving onto bigger and better things with their lives.

Sofia will attend Bentley University in Waltham, Mass., while Jayson will head to the Waterbury branch of the University of Connecticut.

Good luck Jayson and Sofia, and keep up the great work! Your contributions to DHS Cross Country and Track will not be forgotten.

Congrats to our final winner of the May Madness Calendar fundraiser, Anna Signore!

Thank you all for your support!

The May Madness winner for Thursday, May 28th, 2026 is Stephen Wojtowicz!

Congrats Wojo!