Running Like The Wind For You: District Meet in Ruston

This week, Em and her teammates headed to Ruston for their district track meet. It was a gorgeous and windy day, and the scene was set for the teams from WCCA to have a great meet. When I arrived, the field events were going on, and soon the exciting news reached me: the varsity girls placed 1st and 2nd in the high jump and the discus, and 1st and 3rd in the shot put! Way to go, girls!

Next up was Emma's long jump. Each girl got three jumps and then the six longest jumpers moved on to jump three more times. Here's Emma's first jump:

Her first jump was her longest of the year, measuring a distance of 15' 6 1/2"! Great job, Em! One of the parents arrived moments later and asked how Emma was doing. I told him her distance and he repeated, "Oh, 15' 6"? That's her best!" I made sure to tell him that she jumped 15' 6 AND 1/2"! He joked with me, saying that only a sister would know that!

Her second jump was great, too:

The distance of her second jump was 15' 4 1/2"...another great jump! After three jumps, Emma had the longest jump by a good 5 inches, and moved into round 2. Here's her best jump out of the second round:

This last jump was another good one and measured 15' 3 1/2". After all the girls jumped, their best distance was used to determine their placements. One girl nearly caught Emma, jumping 15' 6", which makes my earlier story very important! Emma won 1st place by a half an inch! Great jumping, Emma!

The running started next, and the varsity girls were off to a great start. Laurel won 1st in the 2-mile run, with an amazing time of 13:57, and Jessica took 3rd. The points were stacking up for the girls, and the day was only just beginning!

Here's Emma's next race, the 300M Hurdles:

The 800M Relay was up next for Emma and her teammates. The video of this race was too large to post, but it was an exciting race. The girls are still working on their handoffs, and I caught them warming up:

A strategic meeting with the relay team takes place on the infield, and then the girls work on their exchanges.

Bethany waits for Emma to hit her mark...

...the handoff is made...

...and Bethany takes off!
The team gets a word and a baton from their coach before the race.
Time to focus...

Emma started in the blocks and gave them a great lead, and each girl ran her best. The girls had a scary handoff between the third and fourth runners, but were able to hang on to the baton and their lead. It was an exciting finish, with our girls grabbing 1st place!

The next race for Emma was the 400M Relay:

Our girls looked great! Way to finish strong!

Here's Emma running the 100M Hurdles and some photos of that race:

After two heats, Emma placed 3rd in the 100M Hurdles. Great job, Em!

Emma's last race was the 1600M Relay, which she ran beautifully! Their team was in the first lane, and you can see Emma setting her blocks to start the race.

Emma's off!
This photo is a little deceiving because Emma appears to be in last place. However, they begin this race staggered, and Em's too fast for that!
Here she is in the last stretch, with her rival from Huntington in the green.Emma approached the handoff. Due to the staggered start, Emma reached her second leg runner before the girl from Huntingto reached hers, so at this point, we're in first!

Emma slows down and Mary Claire revs up for her lap.

Another great race! Each of the relay runners ran so well, and gave it their all. All that hardwork paid off. Emma and her team placed 1st in the 1600M Relay! Great job, girls!

Emma and her teammate pose for a picture after the meet.

The team reacts to the announcement of their scores and their 1st place overall finish for the meet! Way to go, girls!
Holding the 1st place trophy, our track star is all smiles!

Emma and her relay teammates, Caroline, Bethany and Mary Claire.

Em goofs off with her pal, Bethany.

These girls ran so well today, and worked so very hard. Great job, girls!

Both teams from WCCA had a fantastic day. The varsity boys team also placed 1st overall. What a great team, posing here with their coaches.

Emma has learned so much from these two special people. Thanks, Mays and Aelis, for helping Emma to be a better runner and for all of your help with the track team!