Ready to compete
Spring season approaches for Track & Field team
February 9, 2021
The Seattle Pacific University track team is gearing up for competition as they prepare to compete in March, during the scheduled outdoor season.
“We’ll have our first meet starting in March and then pretty much every weekend until the middle of May,” Reed said.
Reed looks forward to the upcoming season with joy, not only for him, but for his athletes.
“Relief, extreme excitement, more so for the student athletes. They were the first ones that had to suffer from losing competitive opportunities and by the time we toe the line in March it would have been a full year since they have competed,” Reed said.
Even with the joy of having an outdoor track season, there will be some restrictions presented, from limited travel to social distancing. Coach Reed stated that most of the meets that the Falcons participate in are going to be local and there is not going to be much travel, if any, out of the state.
“There’s going to be a lot of smaller meets, fewer people. It will just be different and I think there are definitely certain events where it helps to have larger sizes and competitive juice in the event. We will just have to create that energy,” Reed stated.
Due to the cancellation of the 2019-2020 track season, three SPU track seniors last year decided to come back and compete for the 2020-2021 season. The three SPU seniors that came back are Grace Bley, Scout Cai and Kate Lilly.
For Cai, feelings of disappointment came when losing their season last year.
“It was frustrating. You come to practice everyday and work hard with your teammates. To hear that your outdoor season is cancelled, especially senior year, it’s upsetting,” Cai said.
After dealing with frustration and disappointment of losing a season and the unknown of having a season this year, joy spreads throughout the team. Instead of focusing on what she has lost, Bley looks forward to the upcoming season
“While our official schedule has not been released, I am happy to know that we will still have an opportunity to compete even if our season looks a little different from past years,” Bley said.
Cai described that even though it was hard to have the outdoor season cancelled, it was an amazing opportunity to have a chance at another season. Cai states that track is an important aspect in not only her life, but the lives of her teammates.
“Track is a big part of all our lives, we do it everyday and so having track, especially during this time has been really nice,” Cai said.
While there will be an outdoor season, there will not be an indoor season.
“Indoor track is an exciting way to start the new season and the thing I’ll miss most about indoor is the atmosphere. We usually get to run on a fast track in Nampa, Idaho and I have always loved the whole experience. During the indoor season, we are all excited to be back on the track and because the track is inside, everyone is able to watch and cheer you on during your race,” Bley said.
Bley is excited for the upcoming season and is thankful for the people she has had the opportunity to work with in her time at SPU.
“I am most excited to be back on the track, running with my amazing teammates. We have been through a lot together over the past several years and I am thankful to have them by my side. I know that we are going to give it our all this season and I am excited to see what we can accomplish together,” Bley said.
When it comes to the upcoming season, Cai looks forward to competing and seeing the success of herself and teammates. She also hopes to PR during her final season, one that means something different to her as opposed to seasons past.
“In the past years, I think I’ve focused more on trying to win each event and at times you miss appreciating where you’re at. I think it’s now just important to be in the moment,” said Cai.
