Madison Miller is a first time track athlete. She is known at Carroll for volleyball and softball, and is committed to playing softball for Texas next year.

“It feels great,” said Miller. For her first year ever throwing a javelin, Miller is doing exceptionally well, especially considering that she is also playing softball.

“I just didn’t even think it was a possibility until Coach Biedron walked up to me at the freshmen curriculum fair and he was at track and he was like, ‘Maddie have you ever thought about throwing,’ and I was like, ‘No.’ And he said, “Well, we need girl throwers for javelin,” and I was like, ‘Okay.’ I tried it and I just kind of picked it up.”

“You know I have always been a part of a team sport and this is an individual sport that is also a team sport, so doing something on my own is kind of different but coming out with time trials being really low at 89 feet, now my PR four weeks later 125’4”, taking that big of strides every week. Working hard is showing up and I realize how good I am getting at it now, and if I had been doing it all four years, I just wonder how good I could have been.”

Both men and women placed fourth at the track meet in Goddard last Friday. The warm, windless weather proved helpful for athletes trying to set personal records. With City League tonight, this was an important meet.

Shotput and discus coach Atwater said the meet exposed athletes to some great competition, and that Carroll athletes were not thrown off when others did really well. They focused on what they needed to do to set personal records.

Anthony Gallardo set a personal record in javelin with a throw of 193 feet. According to Coach Atwater, that is right where he needs to be.

“Which is pace to break the school record and also move up in the all-time record,” said Atwater about Gallardo.

Atwater also mentioned Sam Garrison in both disc and shot: “He keeps improving every time, and so he’s already in the top 10 in shot but he’s improving as well.”

On the girls’ side, Scotney Reichenberger set a personal record in shot and disc. Atwater said that Reichenberger stepped up for the girls.

“Overall I felt really pleased with how the team performed as a whole,” said Coach Swords. “AJ McCormick (pole vault) had a foot PR, that was good, and he’s been there for a while. So to have three vaulters now 13 feet or over with Brian Simon, Ethan Hull, and AJ McCormick, that’s great…it’s one freshman and two sophomores so that’s exciting as well because they’re just going to continue to get better. Anthony Gallardo breaking 190 in the javelin and then also lowering his PR in the 400 meters to 54:7 was impressive. Joseph Holthusen getting back to the 40-second mark for his hurdles was great as well. And then I think Jason Irwin, not that it didn’t impress me, but it probably surprised him more so with his sub-ten 3200 meters and just the way that he finished that race was really exciting.”

Irwin had not run the 3200 for the entire season before this meet. He ran the two miles in 9 minutes and 55 seconds, and he ran the first mile faster than his previous mile personal record.

Grace Buessing ran her 400 in 60.8 seconds. She gives all the glory to God for giving her the talent to run and train to become better at it.
“Surprisingly, it felt really good,” said Buessing. “All I could see was Coach Swords in my mind telling me to get my heels to my butt and my arms to my chin.”

Holthusen and Kindel Nordhus are two hurdlers who are set to go to state and compete. They have been stand out athletes since their freshman years.

“Coach Reynolds has basically planned out everything, and he’s done a really good job of figuring out where we are and what times we’re supposed to be getting during the work outs,” said Holthusen. “He always holds me accountable. It’s more Coach Reynolds’ time commitment than me.”

“I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I love it,” said Miller. “I mean I’m not gonna do it in college but I love spending time, I’m getting to know people who I never got to talk to throughout four years of high school, and I think that’s just opened me up to a new realm and it’s just kind of cool.”