SMAC Running Club - Strength Motivation And Courage

This season brought many achievements and success, both as a team, and individually, both on and off the track. The girls learned that on a track team, winning is not the only important thing, that first you have to learn to work together. They learned that teamwork is key, and it plays a huge role in your success on the track as well. They realized that working together is extremely more effective than each person working alone. Working hard and working together is what instigated the achievements of this season.

At the St. James Invitational, the girls took first place overall with 87 points. The 4 x 100 meter relay team placed first by just four hundredths of a second. The 4 x 400 meter relay team finished in a close second place and the 4 x 200 meter team rounded out the relay success with a strong third place finish. Individual successes included both running and field events. Katrina placed 6th in the 400 with a time of 1:09.42. 1st, 3rd, and 6th place were taken in the 800 meter run by Dani (2:41.68), Jamie (2:51.78), and Katelyn (2:59.97). In the 1600 meter run, three SMAC members placed 1st, 2nd, and 5th, run by Dani (5:49.12), Kristen (6:05.84), and Katelyn (6:38.66). For field events, Emma placed 2nd in both the shot put with a throw of 26' 10 1/4", and discus with a throw of 67' 6 1/2".

The next week, the St. Catherine Meet brought both individual, relay, and overall success. The 4 x 100 relay team placed 4th following close behind the three teams that finished ahead of them, and the 4 x 400 meter relay team finished in a close 2nd place for the second week in a row. Individual scoring included a 6th place finish in the 200 meter dash run by Lindsey with a time of 29.75 seconds, a 5th place in the 400 meter dash run by Ellen with a time of 1:09.57, a 1st and 4th place were achieved in the 800 meter run by Dani (2:36.37) and Jamie (2:47.15), and a 1st and 5th place in the 1600 meter run, run by Dani (5:44.63) and Katelyn (6:23.96) The field events also brought successes to the team once again. Elena placed 3rd in long jump with a jump of 14' 3.5". Emma placed 1st in shot put with a throw of 27' 7.5" and 6th in discus with a throw of 57'. Ellen placed 2nd in discus (68' 7") to add to her night's successes. The team ended up placing 1st overall with 67 total points.

At the St. Jude/Queen Of Peace Invitational, the girls again finished in first place overall with 80 points. Kristen (14.50) and Elena (14.72) placed 5th and 6th in the 100 meter finals to start off the night. Next, the team took1st (Dani- 5:42.17), 3rd (Kristen- 5:56.66) and 5th (Jamie- 6:13.37) place in the 1600 meter run. The 4 x 100 meter relay team placed first to continue its season's successes. Ellen again placed 5th in the 400 meter dash with a time of 1:07.97. In the 800 meter run Dani placed 1st (2:39.47) and Jamie placed 6th (2:53.50). The 4 x 400 meter relay team finished 2nd for the third consecutive week to finish off the successes of the running events for the night. In the field events, Elena placed 2nd in long jump with a jump of 13' 8 1/2". Emma placed 2nd in both discus (66' 9 3/4") and shot put (26' 10 1/4") and Ellen placed 3rd in discus with a throw of 62' 10".

The Tuck Sullivan/Sacred Heart Track Invitational was another successful meet, overall, the team placed 2nd, just 8 points behind the 1st place team. Katrina placed in the 400 meter dash for the second time with a 1:06.63 5th place finish. In the 800 meter run, there was a tie for 1st place between Dani and a runner from Sacred Heart (2:36.18). In the 1600 meter run, SMAC took a first place (Dani- 5:46.09). Once again, for the fourth week in a row, the 14 x 400 meter relay team took another close second place. Emma threw 30' 3" for a first place in shot put, and discus gave the team a 3rd & 5th place, thrown by Ellen (68' 10") and Emma (66' 5").

The next week at the SMAC/St. Gertrude East West Invitational, SMAC took part as an East team. Overall, East came in 2nd place to West. To start off the night, SMAC's Katelyn took part in the special 4 x 800 meter relay which took 2nd place to West. In the 200 meter dash, Lindsey placed 6th in the 200 meter dash for the second time, running a 29.41. Katrina placed 5th in the 400 meter dash with a time of 1:07.18. In the 800 meter run, Dani placed 1st with a time of 2:35.41, and Katelyn placed 4th with a time of 2:48.36. SMAC took 1st and 3rd place finishes in the 1600 meter run by Dani (5:39.81) and Kristen (5:57.74) The 4 x 100 meter relay team finished with a close second place, the 4 x 200 team took 6th, and the 4 x 400 team took a very close second yet again. For field events, Emma placed 1st in discus with a throw of 80' 2" and also took 2nd in shot put with a throw of 28' 5 1/2". Lindsey (13' 8 1/2") and Elena (13' 2") placed 3rd and 6th in the long jump. Haley placed in the high jump in a tie for 5th place with a jump of 4' 4", SMAC's first place in high jump all season. This meet also held a special event, the pentathlon, which Ellen represented SMAC in, she performed fantastic and ended overall in a 2nd place tie.

The last meet of the season was the CYO City Championships...the last, and the most interesting. Katrina placed 4th in the 400 meter dash with a time of 1:07.10, Dani placed in the 800 (2:33.78) and 1600 meter run (5:32.94). SMAC's 4 x 100 meter relay team placed 5th with a time of 1:01.25, and the 4 x 400 meter relay team finished in a close second, to end the season just like they ended every other meet. In the field events, Emma placed 1st in shot put with a throw of 27' 6.5" and SMAC took both 1st and 2nd in the discus, Ellen throwing 74' 2'' and Emma throwing 71' 10''. When it came time to tally the total points for the overall results, both SMAC and St. James WO had 62 points, so they went to a tie breaker, which was the number of 1st places each team had. But, of course it wasn't over there, both teams had three 1st places, SMAC in the 800 and 1600 meter runs, and discus and St. James in the 400 meter dash the 4 x 200 meter relay, and the 4 x 400 meter relay. So they looked to each team's number of 2nd places. St. James had one in the 100 meter dash, and SMAC had two, in the discus, and the 4 x 400 meter relay. So SMAC won the 2007 Division I CYO City Championships in a double tie breaker. What a way to end the season.

But there was more to the 2007 track season than just the results from the meets. At the beginning of the season, the team made a decision to dedicate their season to Jenna, a former teammate who was battling osteosarcoma, the girls worked hard all season in honor of her. They also dedicated the saying Strength, Motivation, And Courage to her. Pink shoelaces were worn by each athlete and coach to symbolize both support for Jenna, and team unity. The season meant a lot more to the team than just scoring in the meets. They had phenomenal coaches and captains to lead them through every moment of the season, to show them what it really means to be a member of SMAC. They showed the team the importances of working hard and working together, that anyone can make an achievement, but teamwork can make those achievements so much more meaningful and valuable. All of these qualities made this season one to remember!

SMAC Running Club, Loveland, Ohio
Comprised of students from the schools of
St. Columban & St. Margaret of York
and other parochial schools near Loveland, Ohio.

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