Track progresses through Sections
Numerous park athletes advance to State
June 4, 2019
As the Track team advances through Sections, freshman Josie Mosby said she was ecstatic when she realized she placed second in the girls 1600-meter and qualified for State.
“I was really confused because I have had such a bad season and I didn’t think I had that in me. I haven’t really come close to that time in over a year so it feels really good, but also doesn’t feel real,” Mosby said.
Boys’ Track head coach Kelson Mackenzie said the challenge of Sections is an enjoyable competition to watch and see his players compete at a high level.
“We have focused on coming into this meet one race at a time, some people had one opportunity to give it their very best and a couple of guys are going for two or three races against tough (competition),” Mackenzie said.
Senior Nick Medina said he wasn’t completely fulfilled by his throws in shot put, despite placing first and heading to State.
“I could have done better. I felt like I did OK for the day but I definitely could have pushed myself further and gotten a higher mark, but it was still cool to get there and go back to State again,” Medina said.
Mackenzie said he was proud of players for having the mindset of always wanting more and scoring better.
“Wanting to run faster or throw further is a good attitude to have, a true competitor is never satisfied,” Mackenzie said.
Junior Joseph Donahue said he was proud he qualified for State in his fourth competitive 100-meter dash.
“My first 100(-meter) I ever ran was a really bad time, but slowly I have dropped and dropped with big personal records with only running it four times this year,” Donahue said. “Once I realized I qualified I was excited because I have never gone to State before and I am just really excited to run against the best of the best.”
With several athletes from Park advancing to State, Mackenzie said he was incredibly honored to be part of such a driven team.
“I’ve been proud of the entire team and I’m not just saying that, the people here have put in the work, they have showed up and they really made it happen,” Mackenzie said.
State for Park Track and Field will be 4 p.m. May 7 and 8 at Hamline University.
