Triad’s Cayla Eaton makes a mad dash for the finish line during the first heat of the girls 100-meter hurdle race. Eaton has advanced to the finals of the Division III event at the state track and field meet.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Aleksei Pavloff)
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It’s the end of the road for many, but some athletes kept their state hopes alive.
Athletes from across the state descended upon Welcome Stadium in Dayton Thursday afternoon for the start of the 2024 state track and field meet.
Most of the Division III athletes took their first steps closer to a podium appearance.
Triad’s Cayla Eaton qualified for the 100-meter hurdle finals after finishing second in her prelim heat with a time of 15.2.
Stepping into her last appearance in a Lady Cardinal uniform, the senior sought to make the most of her experience and desire in the event’s first heat.
“What was going through my mind leading up to the race was you just need to qualify for tomorrow,” she said. “Now is the time to show how hard you have worked.”
The top two finishers in each heat qualified for the finals with the next two fastest times also advancing. Once the gun sounded, Eaton was off to the races.
“The first couple hurdles felt alright,” she said. “I did slow down on one hurdle, but ended up catching up.
“I feel like I did pretty well overall,” she said. “Not a PR, but it’s getting there.”
The senior’s rocky start culminated in a race to the finish against United’s Brinsley Hiscox, who was .02 seconds slower than Eaton.
After securing second place in the heat, the relief of qualifying for the finals was well worth the last-second effort.
“What was going through my mind as I crossed the finish line was you need to push because you can beat this girl,” Eaton said. “Give everything you’ve got to give yourself a good spot for tomorrow.
“It feels super good,” she said. “I’m very excited as I’m sitting third right now, but anything could change.”
Fairbanks’ girls 4×400 meter relay team did not have the same outcome.
The team of Rachael Hoover, Alexis Wojcehowicz, Mollie Thursh and Charley Shope finished fourth in the second heat with a time of 4:05.91.
It was a somber moment when the third and final heat crossed the finish line. At that moment, the FHS crew knew they would not be advancing to the finals.
Looking back at the experience of making it to the state competition, there was some good that came from competing among the best in the state.
“It was really fun having practices with basically just us,” Thrush said.
The nervousness that stirred in the air could be cut with a knife.
Thrush, though, dove into the second heat trusting her training.
“It was really nerve-racking and I didn’t execute the way I wanted to today,” she said. “It was really cool being here and being on a blue track for once. That was really cool.”
For her first state appearance, taking in the entire setting can be a lot to handle. However, Thrush said it was a journey worth remembering.
“It was crazy seeing all these people,” she said. “It was really fun to be in the environment and being around these really talented athletes.”
The state meet continued on Friday and will run through today.
Athletes from JonAlder, Fairbanks and North Union will compete to advance to finals and/or earn state places.