The Warren girls track and field team is getting ready for the 2024 indoor competition season with their first meet on Friday, February 23. The buzz and adrenaline that comes with the sport of high school track and field is set in motion. Weeks of practice prepares the team for the five, nerve-wrecking meets of indoor competition. Indoors consists of strategically training for events that are contrasting to how they would be outside. Distance, events, and environment are all factors that set up competitors on a different stage to perform. Focusing on preparation, what to look out for, goals, moods, and mindsets, here is a look inside the team here at Warren on their impressions for how this season will go.
Leading up to the main event, outdoor/spring season, winter and off season preparation is key. Track and field is an especially long season because of its continuous transition from indoor to outdoor. Aside from club or off season training, the best athletes also make best use of the winter meets in order to set them up for the spring season. State returning sprinter and senior, Carolina Martinez, has consistently put in the work year-round and says, “I want to use our indoor season like a slingshot into outdoor. If we can set ourselves up now, I know that once April comes, we’re going to feel more confident and prepared for our higher competition meets.”
Each season brings more opportunities and higher expectations. Through endless training, pressure and stress build up to the moment athletes are on the line; ready to see if their hard work has paid off, or if they will be able to live up to the standards that they have previously set. However, another thing to look forward to are the unpredictable, fresh, and new members of the team. Senior, Emma Leung, talks about someone you should look out for from the long distance runners. “You can definitely expect some really fast freshmen, especially Kaylee Wilson. She’s been working really hard in training during the winter time.” Experienced and dedicated senior, Katie Wiklund, also has optimism for the new hurdlers of this season. She says, “We have lots of new talent and also all of our hurdlers from last year are returning. So Jamie and I are both running the 300, and Lizzie and I are also running the 100. We have plenty of new people who we’re looking forward to. There’s a lot of great potential that we’ve seen so far in practice. So I am very optimistic that we are going to have lots of good hurdlers this year.”
From a coaching perspective, Coach Gaines has much excitement for her sprinters this season, “You can expect to see a lot of record-breaking PRs coming your way, a lot of good relays we have. And a lot of girls just breaking their personal records and hopefully getting to state this year.” Teaching the girls how to understand what track is all about, the athletes learning how to gauge what their bodies are doing, and getting as many girls to state as possible are all goals Gaines is setting her runners up for this season.
With past experience, seniors like triple and high jumper Sara Kachurik also have aspirations for the jumpers this season. “We are hoping for girls to try their best with jumps because sometimes they can be really hard. We just want to see their best effort and to keep at it because sometimes it takes a little bit to get your jumps down.” Sara leads a good example of a fearless athlete with her advice for this season, “I tell the other girls to be as confident as possible. Sometimes it can be scary, but as long as you believe in yourself and just go for it, you’ll do good.”
Following a very impressive season as seated shot put State champion and discus runner-up, is Maddie Hauder with her open and eager mindset for her senior year. “Since it’s my senior year, I am very excited to have one last final season and experience what track and field is all about again. Overall, the mindset I’m in is just about growth and just doing better on myself than what I did last year and improving.”
Finally, going into a new season can be worrying for any athlete, but these seniors have different ways of getting their mindset in the right place for their last high school track and field season.
Leading the hurdlers is Katie Wiklund who is excited and confident for what this season has in store for the group. Knowing that they have put in the work off season and that they are learning the intricate event of hurdling, Katie is feeling super optimistic about how things are going. Now is the time to continue working, put all their efforts to the test, and appreciate the sport. “So going into this season, I think we should all be going with a super positive attitude, just looking forward to having fun. We’ve been here for so long, it’s really good to just enjoy our last time together out on the track doing something we enjoy.”
Carolina Martinez is a runner who also wants to continue her growth as an athlete and teammate. Her mindset going forward has a plan that will lead her and her team to success. “So three big key words I always keep in mind are perseverance, consistency, and patience. Getting through hard workouts at practice are gonna make practices feel so much better and smoother, that’s the perseverance part. Then sticking to a routine will keep our body acclimated to intense work, and in shape, that’s the consistency. And lastly, you gotta trust everything you put in will show on to the track. It may not come right away, but when it does I promise it feels so satisfying and worth it. That’s patience.” This advice has been cultivated over many hard-working years of track and will inspire any of the younger members of the team. The program at Warren has taken part in producing dedicated athletes like her who will have made an impact on the team moving forward.
Our last senior, who actively puts the team in front of herself, is Emma Leung. Her mindset going into this season is hopeful and collective. Talking about the distance group, she says, “The mindset I have is just working as hard as I can and making sure people around me are also working hard and enjoying this. It’s all about having fun and being a part of a team. And we are all such a good team. And we are also just so connected.”
It is evident that the girls track and field team at Warren is a community where high school athletes can strive for success among many people to look up to. Coach Gaines displays this sisterhood and presents how she feels going into this season by saying, “I feel really good about this season because early on, we’re all working as a team, which is something that we’ve been waiting for for a really long time. So I’m excited about that. We are more unified, we are doing a lot more in the community as well so expect to see a lot more of girls track and field.”
Show your support for the Warren girls Track and Field team in their indoor season through to the outdoors!
