Also by Maddy Nolting
On Saturday, the track and field team had its first varsity meet of the year. They started off with a strong performance, with personal records already set for the athletes. Both the coach and athletes are feeling very positive about this upcoming season.
Sophomore Wren Freeman, one of the athletes, shared her excitement about returning to competition. She said that she “felt good” about her performance and was really proud to start the season with a personal record.
“I got a good PR for this season going,” Freeman said, “I feel good about that.” She shared that she didn’t have great expectations and that she was excited when she exceeded her own goals by doing better than anticipated.
Head Coach Koekpe was enthusiastic about the team’s positive energy. According to Koekpe, the meet was really important as the team transitioned from junior varsity competition into their very first varsity event. Koapke shared, “We’ve had a great start to the season. We’ve had a ton of personal records set so far today, and it’s been a really good day.”
Koepke also mentioned multiple strengths the team has been working on, including standout hurdlers, strong relay teams, and promising middle-distance runners. He also shared his excitement toward the season and added, “Our kids are doing awesome.”
One of the athletes, junior Jonas Fontaine, demonstrated that hard work pays off. After dedicating time to train and competing in races off-season, his performance was great, and led him to a first-place finish in the 800-meter. He mentioned, “I did a lot of offseason training, a lot of races.” Fontaine said about winning, “I just took it out from the start, and no one else followed me.” “I just wanted to win by myself.” His goals for the future are to continue improving and qualify for state competition.
Another amazing win by LHS was senior Jenna Ellquist, who won in girls’ discus and 2nd in shot put.
After a day full of strong finishes, the track and field team proved they are ready to compete in this new season.
