One foot in front of the other. Every time I would try to justify running track in high school, I would tell myself that it was just one foot in front of the other. For a long, long time, I would try to justify becoming a sprinter.
Not fast enough, and too lazy. Shot put? Not big enough. Strike after strike after strike. Although I have always been infatuated with the sport, I could never muster up the mental strength to put myself out there.
For this reason, I have always garnered a tremendous amount of respect for people who run track. Although I would tell myself that there truly wasn’t a point to a sport where the goal was just to run, I would always just use this as an excuse to justify my inability to join the team.
After years and years, I have realized that track serves more as a competition against one’s self rather than towards some common objective. Mental strength swings a heavy hand in the world of track, and each athlete must battle with their fatigue, personal times and a constant voice of doubt. This voice is constantly telling them to quit, telling them that their legs are too tired, that the other people are faster, and that you’re not good enough.
The Hopkins women’s track and field team looks forward to a season of overcoming these mental and physical obstacles, and venues such as Bucknell, George Mason and Penn State provided opportunities for them to prove their willingness to outrun the competition.
Frances Loeb, a senior for the women’s track and field team, set an unbelievably high precedent for her fellow runners and the Centennial Conference by clocking in at 16:42.57 in the women’s 5000-meter invitational, setting a personal, school and conference record.
Loeb’s time bests teammate Hannah Oneda’s previous school record of 16:48.24, which stood since Dec. 9, 2012. Freshman teammate Bridget Gottlieb finished sixth with a time of 17:22.71.
Coming into the night, the best time in the country for a Division III runner in the indoor 5K this season was 16:56.65. Loeb’s fantastic finish was her best time on the season, besting her time of 17:15.89 which she collected at Navy on Dec. 2.
For her career, the best time Loeb had in the event was 16:54, which she easily beat with her record-setting performance during the meet. Although Loeb has set a high precedent, she needs assistance from her teammates in various events in order to secure Hopkins a spot as a leader in the Centennial Conference.
The long distance runners search for balance in the ranks of the Hopkins sprinters, who in turn look to make an impact of their own.
Megan McDonald, one of the sprinter captains of the Lady Jays squad, was kind enough to answer several questions regarding their ensuing season.
Devin Tucker: What do you think is your team’s greatest strength?
Megan McDonald: I think our greatest strength lies in how close knit we are as a team. We all get along really well and that mentality makes getting through tough workouts much easier and makes meets more fun.
DT: What do you think you need to work on most moving forward?
MM: I personally need to work on staying confident and still keeping my head in it as the season progresses. Even after having some bad races, I just have to remember that not every week is going to be perfect and my hard work will pay off in the end.
DT: How can Hopkins separate themselves from other teams?
MM: Just like I said above, our overall team mentality is really special and separates us from other teams. We all love watching each other succeed and cheering each other on.
