Coaches Philip Guidry (far left) and Randall Antoine (far right) pose with their six senior athletes and the 2021 and 2022 state titles. 

For the six track and field seniors at Westgate High School, success has become the expectation. After picking up back-to-back 4A state titles in 2021 and 2022, all eyes are on the gold as the track and field season gets underway.

Leading the team is head coach Philip Guidry, who credits much of the success the seniors have accomplished to their tight bonds built from years of competing with one another.

“A lot of these kids have been together in multiple sports for much of their lives, so I think that is important to their success,” Guidry explained. “It’s also important that they buy into the program, there are athletes in this program that have helped to start the foundation for the program and they’ve been able to continue the legacy that they created. I took over in 2015 and we won the state championship, so the things that we started then have kind of prepared us for where we are now.”

Where they are now is chasing their third consecutive state title, affectionately called the three-peat. After losing out on the 2020 season due to COVID, the Tigers were unable to secure what was expected to be a nailed-on state title that year. Guidry said that while some kids would lose their focus and drive after achieving so much success, his team is still as hungry as ever.

“I think it’s always something that they’re going to want to chase,” he said of the state title. “You always have to find something that can keep you motivated and I always think back to the 2020 team, because honestly these seniors could’ve had even more success. Losing then motivates me because that group we had was arguably the best group that we’ve had, so fighting for those guys is what keeps me motivated.”

Before the team can turn their eyes to the outdoor season, the state indoor championship needs to be dealt with first.

On Saturday, several of Guidry’s seniors will travel to the Carl Maddox Fieldhouse at LSU in search of individual honors and a chance at another team title.

“It’s tough to win a team championship in the indoor season because you have to compete against the 5A schools,” Guidry said. “We’ll beat a lot of those 5A schools, but the biggest thing is to be competitive in the relays.”

“We’re third in the 4×200-meters and Mekhi is doing well in the 60-meters, which is a new event for him. I just want us to go out there and compete. If we can finish as one of the top teams as a 4A school, I’ll be very happy with that. We also expect some individual first-place finishes. I think Dedrick will do well in the triple jump and that’ll steamroll us into the outdoor season and get us where we need to be.”

In addition to their hard work in the indoor season, the team is also putting in several hours a day getting ready for the outdoor season. Guidry said that he has special workouts, called tempo days, that allow the athletes to replicate the intense meet conditions at practice so his team will be ready for whatever they may face.

“Tempo days serve the purpose of getting the athletes used to overcoming fatigue,” he explained. “In the race there’s various points where the athletes start to experience a bit of tiredness, so my feeling is that if you can get them to overcome it in the workout, when you get to the race they’ll not only be able to do it in one event, but they can compete in multiple events. In a track meet, you might end up asking a kid to perform in four events, so their experience in the workouts will prepare them for that.”

Guidry’s goals for the outdoor season are lofty, but if previous performances are anything to go by, they are likely to come true.

“My outdoor goals are to win district, regionals and state again and go for the three-peat,” he said confidently. “These guys can continue to raise the bar for the next group that’s coming here.”

Before one of the team’s practices ahead of the 2023 Indoor Track and Field State Meet, Westgate’s six seniors spoke with The Daily Iberian about their experiences in track and field and what they hope to accomplish this season.

Mekhi Boutte

2023 events: Indoor – 60-meters, 4×200-meters, possibly the 400-meters, 4×400-meters. Outdoor – 100-meters, 200-meters, 400-meters, and one of the relays

Favorite event: “The 200-meters because it’s my best race. It’s just the perfect race for me to recover if I make a mistake.”

Favorite T&F memory: “When we won state for the first time. I didn’t expect us to win it because it was my first year competing.”

Hardest part: “Definitely tempo days. The 4-3-2-1 is rough.”

What got you started in T&F: “I’ve been doing track since I was eight years old, but I used to do distance. I used to be good at distance, but coming into middle school I started to hate it. When I came to Westgate I started to do more sprints.”

How has T&F helped you: “Athletically it has helped me further my goals to compete in college. It’s also helped me to become a better person. I’m more responsible and more of a team player.”

What would you say is the secret to your success: “My coaches. All those tempo days and block days help too, along with getting the proper recovery.”

Would you recommend T&F to other athletes: “Definitely. No matter what other sports you do, track and field is always the best in my opinion. It helps with speed and explosiveness and that carries over to other sports.”

Goals: “I want to go 10.5 at the least and sub-21. I want to do the 400-meters but I don’t know if I’m going to make it. I just want to break 50 (seconds).”

Dedrick Latulas

2023 events: Indoor – long jump, triple jump, 4×200-meters Outdoor – long jump, triple jump, 4×200-meters, 110-meter hurdles

Favorite event: “I like the triple jump because it shows off my explosiveness. In the long jump you just get that one powerful jump so a lot of it is just speed work and distance. I feel like the triple jump goes off of your explosiveness because you have three jumps to show off. I’m really short, so I surprise a lot of people when I win.”

Favorite T&F memory: “Winning the state championship. My first time I didn’t make it in any events, so I came back next year and won in three events. I was able to contribute to the team’s success and win a state championship, so that has to be my favorite memory.”

Hardest part: “Practice. When you get to the meet, it should be easy since you train for it the whole time. Meets are where you go to pick up your hardware. Those tempo days, the long sprints, that has to be the hardest part.”

What got you started in T&F: “I met Amaaz (Eugene) in middle school and he was faster than me, so I always told myself if I wanted to get faster in football then I needed to run track with him. We’ve been going back and forth battling with each other.”

How has T&F helped you: “When I got to high school I was pretty fast and I could score touchdowns, but when I would break for long runs I’d often get caught. When you look at my film from freshman year to now, I started scoring those longer runs and I’ve continued to get faster. It’s also helped me as a person because it made me learn how to better work with my teammates and compete in a sport that I wasn’t really that good in.”

What would you say is the secret to your success: “It would have to be my family. I didn’t grow up with the best situation and opportunities are already slim in New Iberia, so they pushed me to be better every day. I know that I can’t let them down.”

Would you recommend T&F to other athletes: “Definitely. It made me better as an athlete and as a person. Even if it isn’t your best sport, just come and compete because it works everything. From explosiveness to speed to toughness, it’s a great sport to show off on every level.”

Goals: “To get first in everything that I do now.”

Amaaz Eugene

2023 events: Indoor – no events, still playing basketball at Westgate. Outdoor – 4×100-meters, 4×200-meters.

Favorite event: “The 4×100-meters because that’s the event that I always participate in to win state.”

Favorite T&F memory: “The 2022 state meet. Everybody came together and was locked in to win it. We were having fun out there.”

What got you started in T&F: “My coaches pushed me hard. I was trying to get faster for football and ended up falling in love with track.”

How has T&F helped you: “It taught me that multiple things can help you achieve greatness in the thing you care about the most. Track helps with explosiveness and that helps on the football field.”

What would you say is the secret to your success: “My drive. I take the same mentality to every sport that I play.”

Would you recommend T&F to other athletes: “Absolutely. No matter what you play, you can get better with track. Even if you just practice it, you’re going to gain something from it whether it’s performance or mentally.”

Goals: “To try to win another state title to make the three-peat and to cut down on all my times.”

Monty Keoyothy

2023 events: Pole Vault

Why do you like the pole vault event: “It’s the only event that I’m in. Pole vaulting has opened me up to a lot of new opportunities. I’m on varsity now because of pole vaulting, I’ve been able to meet new people, and get closer to my team.”

Favorite T&F memory: “Hitting my PR (personal record) at regionals and seeing my teammates win it at state. It motivated me to do better and to be with them this year.”

Hardest part: “There’s a lot, but the main one is trying to stay motivated and not lose hope. There’s a lot of people who are better out there, so it’s hard to think that you can compete with them. You just have to come out here everyday and do what you can to see progress.”

What got you started in T&F: “It was a movie that I watched with my brother called Unbroken. It had track and field in it so we both decided to get into it.”

How has T&F helped you: “As a kid I wasn’t really active but track and field has helped me athletically by increasing my stamina and my strength. As a person, it’s made me a wonderful person and taught me responsibility and maturity.”

What would you say is the secret to your success: “Constant practice and consistency. Anytime that I’ve failed, it was because I wasn’t consistent in practice.”

Would you recommend T&F to other athletes: “Definitely because there’s a place for everybody, whether you’re on JV or varsity, no matter what events you do. I started running and didn’t fit in with the speed requirements, but eventually Coach Guidry found a place for me.”

Goals: “To hit a new PR and get a scholarship somewhere by making it to state so I can get my name out there.”

Amari Porter

2023 events: Indoor – 4×200-meters and 4×400-meters Outdoor – 4×100-meters, 4×200-meters, 4×400-meters and either the 200 or 400-meters

Favorite event: “It has to be the 200-meters because I can go out there and just run my race. I’ve shown improvement since last year so I want to see what time I can get this year.”

Favorite T&F memory: “Watching all my teammates compete and win state. That encouraged me to want to be a part of that win.”

Hardest part: “Tempo days have to be the hardest part. The workouts are harder, the recovery times are shorter, and they are back to back with such a high intensity that you get tired quickly.”

What got you started in T&F: “I originally wanted to get faster for baseball, but I fell in love with it and I quit baseball and came to track full time.”

How has T&F helped you: “It helped me rely on myself and others. In relays, you have to trust your teammates to do their job to win that relay.”

What would you say is the secret to your success: “Hard work. I originally didn’t take it seriously and it showed, so I stepped up my game and now I’m ready for this year.”

Would you recommend T&F to other athletes: “Definitely because it helps you with everything. Speed, endurance, all those things.”

Goals: “I want to break my PRs and win state again.”

Zaid Landry

2023 events: outdoor – high jump and maybe long jump

Favorite event: “The high jump because that’s what I do. I jump high and I always knew how to jump high.”

Favorite T&F memory: “Winning state and when Mekhi beat that man from Edna Karr, because he left that man in the dust.”

Hardest part: “I don’t like losing.”

What got you started in T&F: “They told me that it would help me for football.”

How has T&F helped you: “It helped me become more explosive.”

What would you say is the secret to your success: “My family. I wasn’t really having success until I built a bond with my teammates and I got comfortable with them. That’s when I started having success.”

Would you recommend T&F to other athletes: “Yeah. It gets you better. If you want to be athletic and explosive, come to track.”

Goals: “I want to jump 6-foot, 8-inches and break the school record.”