It has been quite the spring for Lebanon Trail senior Laila Hackett, who has racked up quite the collection of medals.
Hackett built momentum at a series of competitions leading up to the 10-5A meet last month.
There, in a sign of things to come, she swept the district championships in both the 100 and 200 meters, doing so in dominant fashion in both.
That trend continued at the 9-5A/10-5A area meet, where she again claimed gold in both events.
As the road goes on, the level of competition gets tougher and tougher, but Hackett continued to find her way to the medal stand, and at the 5A Region II meet, she won the 100 meters in a time of 11.60 seconds and took second in the 200 in 23.77.
A year ago, Hackett also advanced to the state meet in the same events, finishing second in the 100 by less than one-tenth of a second and she was just off the medal stand in the 200 by four-hundredths of a second.
Determined to take the next step, she did just that, finishing her high school career in style by claiming state gold in the 100 in a time of 11.51 seconds and adding a bronze in the 200 with a mark of 23.96.
SLM: What were your expectations going into the meet?
LH: Going into the meet I wanted to win the 100 and medal in the 200 because last year I came up short in both events.
SLM: Every athlete prepares differently for competition. Describe your pre-race routine?
LH: My pre-race routine just consists of chilling and listening to music. It is important to go into a race relaxed and confident, and I have found that I perform better when I’m having fun instead of letting the nerves get the best of me.
SLM: What is going through your mind during the course of a race?
LH: During the race I just think about mimicking what I do in practice because I know that if I can replicate the things I work on in practice to an actual meet I will perform the way that I am supposed to. Everything we do at practice has a purpose.
SLM: When did you get your start competing in track and field?
LH: I started track and field when I was about 9 or 10 years old. I saw my older siblings and some friends do it so I wanted to do it and I just kept going from there.
SLM: Did you play other sports, and if so, what stands out about track and field?
LH: I did gymnastics for about nine years before I was fully committed to track. Track and field is different because it is very humbling and everything counts down to the very last millisecond.
SLM: Who are some sprinters, or other athletes, you have looked up to?
LH: I look up to Shelly-Ann Fraser-Price and Simone Biles because they are both very tiny like me but they still know how to get the job done.
SLM: What do you enjoy during away from the sport?
LH: During my free time I like to hang out with my friends. A lot of times I have to sacrifice a lot to the sport and I miss out on parties or birthdays but my friends still support me through it so I like surrounding myself with people that want to see me succeed.
SLM: Now that it has been a few days, can you describe what winning the state championship means to yourself?
LH: It is definitely a blessing to see how much my work has paid off. I have been dreaming of this moment for a long time and it was the perfect way to end my high school career.
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