This past Wednesday, Atherton’s track and field team sent the most qualifiers in school history to run at the Class 3A KHSAA Indoor State Championships. Runners competed in a range of events and had a fabulous finish to a great indoor season.
The track team qualified for the girls 4×800 relay, girls 4×200 relay, girl’s 400 meter dash, and the boy’s 4×200 relay.
Lauren Brown, Rylee Carothers, Valentina Arroyo, and Georgia Gabhart qualified for the girl’s 4×200 relay and got 18th place with a time of 1:55.
Nitayvis Short, Corey Jackson, Issac Holt, and Du’Zye Grundy ran the boy’s 4×200 relay and received 19th with a time of 1:35.
Lauren Brown raced the 400 meter dash and got 14th with a time of 1:03.
Lillian Borkowski, Wesley Drake, Elise France, and Ava Llaguno competed in the 4×800 meter relay and ended in 12th place with a new school record of 10:40.
Valentina Arroyo (11) shared her experience as this is her second year competing at the indoor state championship.
“My team had a strong start and maintained it throughout the race, but we were up against tough opponents so it was very competitive,” Arroyo said. “I mentally prepared myself well by mainly knowing what I was getting into since I’ve done it before and keeping myself calm and confident knowing I’m going to put my best on the track no matter what.”
The team’s dynamic pushed many towards success. Georgia Gabhart (11) explains how her teammates motivated her to do her best.
“All of the girls I run with have been very sweet and encouraging to me and I couldn’t have asked for better teammates,” said Gabhart.
Being qualified to run for the state championship is just as much of an individual aspect as it is a team aspect. Ione Murphy (10) competed for the first time this year and shares how this will forever be a special experience for her.
“I was the second person in my relay and the most memorable part was when I hawked someone down,” said Murphy. “It was the first time I’ve ever done it and it was pretty exhilarating.”
The track team has built a strong foundation from this indoor season. It will unquestionably be displayed during their upcoming outdoor season.
