Brett Meyer and Kelly Wycoff – The Dynamic Duo

 

 

 

BY TRISTAN SASSE
PHOTOS COURTESY OF BRETT MEYER

With a relationship developed through sports, junior Brett Meyer and senior Kelly Wycoff have performed at an exceptionally high level for the FHSU track team the past few seasons. Earlier this month, Meyer added an additional memory to an already incredible experience at FHSU by proposing to Wycoff, his longtime girlfriend. Considering both athletes have impressive competitive résumés, it is no surprise they make such a dynamic duo, both on and off the track. 

The Start of an Unforgettable Journey

Both natives of Scott City, Kansas, and graduates of Scott Community High School, the couple has been together since 2012. Through athletics, Meyer and Wycoff have formed an extreme bond over the years.

Although Brett was interested in baseball and basketball in high school, Kelly gave him a reason to go out for track.

“I loved baseball but Kelly was in track and it turned out I wanted to run track just because of her,” said Meyer.

At first, Meyer ended up hating track and didn’t think he was good at it. But even though he didn’t feel as though it was his strong suit, he wanted to continue participating in it just for Kelly.

“I just worked hard and wanted to impress her,” said Meyer. “Then I just kept getting better and better.”

Meanwhile, after a successful high school career, Wycoff’s main focus has been track all along. She loved the sport enough to want to continue her career at FHSU. Since she is a year older than Meyer, she was hoping he would follow her to Fort Hays after her freshman year.

“I graduated high school and came here to run track, and I kind of thought that was what he was going to do,” said Wycoff. “But for awhile, he was going to go play basketball somewhere or just not do track, just not come to Hays.”

Even though uncertainty crossed their path, Meyer finally decided to sign with the Tigers. After arriving in Hays, Meyer and Wycoff both agree it was the right choice.

“I actually didn’t have the best year here, my freshman year,” said Wycoff. “And I don’t want to give him all the credit but when he got here things definitely started clicking and things have just been really good since.”

Once both athletes made Hays their home, they felt a far deeper connection. Athletically and spiritually, the couple believes they have always had the right people strategically placed in their life.

Wycoff talked Meyer into going to Encounter at Celebration Community Church north of Hays, and they soon noticed improvements on the track and outside of athletics after that.

“Meeting people was a big thing. They just kind of guided us in the right direction,” said Meyer. “After that, our faith grew and we gave it all to God, and kept getting faster after that. I give all the glory to Jesus on everything, all my accomplishments.”

The Road to Glory

From that point on, the duo dominated on the track. Including both indoor and outdoor competition, Wycoff is the current record holder in six different races at FHSU (indoor – 200m, 300m, 400m, and 4x400m relay, outdoor – 400m and distance medley relay). Meanwhile, Meyer was part of the fastest mile relay in Tiger history last season. After running incredible times, both athletes achieved all-American status and qualified for nationals.

While both athletes are extreme competitors, they have a different running style. Meyer focuses on mid-distance races and Wycoff’s specialty is in the sprints. Even with varying strengths, they have both been honored as MIAA Track Athletes of the Week on separate occasions.  

Last year, Meyer was the MIAA champion in the 800, and he went on to place seventh at nationals. This year, Meyer became an MIAA champion in the mile and was part of the first place finishing distance medley relay. Additionally, he is .6 seconds shy of the school record in the 1500. With great success in distance races, Meyer placed second in the mile at indoor nationals last month.

“Watching him get second at nationals was really awesome,” said Wycoff. “That was just really cool because I know how hard he’s worked and I admire that a lot.”

Meanwhile, Wycoff has also had major success on the big stage. She has placed at the MIAA Championships three times in both the 200 and 400-meter dash, and became a conference champion in the distance medley relay earlier this year.

To add to the hardware, Wycoff finished fourth in the 200 and second in the 400 at the Kansas Relays in 2017. Most recently, Kelly took home the gold in all four of her events at the UNK Loper Invitational, including the 200, 400, 4×100, and 4×400.  

With great success on the track over the years, Meyer notices Wycoff’s strengths as a teammate.

“She’s a really good leader. I see everyone looking at her and everyone kind of looking up to her,” said Meyer. “Kelly’s also kind to everyone and she loves everyone, and love always wins.”

Wycoff also praised Meyer for his accomplishments and is proud of what he means to his team.

“He’s really humble and I really love that about him,” said Wycoff. “And he works hard every single day at practice and shows his teammates what that looks like to work really hard and achieve your goals.”

Taking the Next Step

Meyer may have achieved his greatest goal earlier this month, however, by giving Wycoff a day she’ll never forget.

“At practice a few weeks ago, I was cranky because we had senior pictures and I was kind of having a bad day,” said Wycoff. “Then Brett surprises me with a haircut and a ring, and it was the best day ever.”

The moment was a major surprise to Wycoff all around. At first, she became emotional when she saw Meyer had gotten a haircut. Soon after, she realized exactly what was going on, which made their special day that much more memorable.

With all the memories formed through track, Meyer and Wycoff plan on staying around athletics after leaving Hays.

“I’m hopefully going to go to PT school. And my dream job would be to be a physical therapist in the track and field world,” said Wycoff.

In the meantime, Meyer is majoring in Teaching and Coaching, but isn’t ready to hang up the spikes just yet.

“I want to run after college, but I have to get faster in order to do that,” said Meyer. “It’s not that good of pay but I would just love to go for my dreams.”

Being around the track means everything to the pair, and they have felt fortunate to be in the position they’re in.

“We just kind of forget how awesome it is that we get to do this together,” said Wycoff. “That experience is just really cool. We’re really thankful.”