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By MAYAN PAZ
Tiger Media Network
Although the Fort Hays State University indoor track and field team already participated in a couple of competitions before winter break, the first meet of the spring semester is considered by members of the team as the real season opener. From here, the team will compete nearly every week until the end of the year.
Having performed well at the pre-break meets in December, expectations were high, and the team delivered a good all-around performance in Topeka on Friday.
FHSU Assistant Coach and Sprints Coach Kelly Meyer spoke about the team’s performance.
“I thought we had a lot of solid performances. For a lot of them, I was either surprised in a good way or just very happy with their results,” she said. “I thought they were just good indicators of solid training through the break.”
Hayden Albright was one of the top performers for the Tigers. Albright already had good performances from December, when he recorded a time of 47.93 seconds in the 400-meter dash, 21.39 in the 200-meter dash, and 6.84 in the 60-meter dash. At Washburn, he improved his 60-meter time to 6.83 and added a solid 21.53 seconds in the 200-meter race.
“I came out and performed pretty well. The meets at the end of last semester ended on a positive note and came back on a positive note,” Albright said. “There is definitely room to improve, but I’m excited for sure.”
Another noted performer was Nolan Churchman. The versatile athlete jumped a distance of 7.14 meters in the long jump competition and added a time of 21.89 seconds in the 200-meter dash. The men’s team showed great depth in the 200-meter race as six different athletes listed a time that was faster than 22 seconds.
Pole vaulter Jacob Clarck jumped a height of 5.05 meters on a short approach. For the women, Liberty Booker and Reba Mader had the best performances. Booker marked 13.67 meters in the shot-put, and Mader ran a time of 58.99 seconds in the 400-meter dash.
While at home for break, athletes had to train individually while at home. Albright spoke about that challenge, as he was still able to produce the most of the situation.
“I’m pretty lucky. I have access to a weight room, blocks, and a track. So, other than that week when everything was covered in snow, I was able to practice normally,” he said.
Meyer also reflected on that issue.
“I can always tell the athletes that have trained well and those that are less,” she said. “Some put in a lot of work, and I felt like it was reflected in their performances. Even some of our athletes that weren’t able to train super consistently the last two weeks, whether it’s from injury or from weather, they still did really well.”
The team next competes on Friday at Pittsburg State University.