Spring About to Heat up with Lakeland Track and Field Season

Among 17 track and field events, there is the potential for greatness for the girls track and field team. 

That’s prevailing belief following a disappointing 1-5 dual meet record in 2010. But with strong distance runners, a returning all-state performer in the discus and strong talent from underclassmen, head coach John Kababik envisions a strong season. 

“I think we’ll be better because we have a very good cross-country team that includes a number of strong runners, and we excel at some other events,” Kababik said. 

Field and sprints

One of the top returning performers is Stephanie Lock, who finished seventh in the state in the discus and all-state. She threw the discus as far as 120 feet a year ago and could top that mark this season. Lock, a three-year varsity athlete in basketball and volleyball, is also an excellent shot putter. Jamie Sheehan will also return to provide great depth in both events, Kababik said. 

In another field event, Shelby Dobreff will return in the pole vault. Dobreff has attended track and field camps and vaulted throughout the offseason, so Kababik expects a strong overall season. At the Livonia Churchill High School camp this winter, she vaulted more than eight feet. Kababik believes the senior could consistently vault at 10 feet outdoors this spring. 

Lakeland’s sprint team should also be very strong. Sophomore Courtney Hedler  is returning after being one of the team’s most consistent sprinters in 100- and 200-meter events last year. She is part of a large group of underclassmen that provide Kababik with talent and depth that could help the Eagles improve as a team in the coming years. 

Strengths in distance

Lakeland will have a very strong group of middle distance runners. They will be led by junior Morgan Bridgewater, an all-state cross-country runner last fall who finished 12th in the 800-meter state finals last spring.

“We look for her to have a tremendous season from the 400-meter event to the two-mile,” Kababik said. “She looks to be in a great position to have a strong spring.” 

Sophomore Reighan Fisher runs with a club, participating in winter indoor meets out of Garden City, Kababik said. She had some impressive 800-meter times during the offseason and is expected to have a strong year.

Senior Raechel Moore was Lakeland’s most valuable distance runner in each of the past two years. She was injured in cross-country in the fall and was in a walking boot during much of the fall but seems to have fully recovered. 

Sophomore Meygan Houghton also should be a strong middle distance runner.

Those four girls competed in the 4 x 800-meter relay last season, and they missed qualifying for the state finals by a half second, Kababik said. 

“That’s not much when it’s a two-mile race. They want to go to the states, and I think they are committed to that,” Kababik said. 

Junior Sara MacDonald has also been a team mainstay and a strong runner in the mile and two-mile events, Kababik added.  Senior Erika Snell scored in just about every dual meet last year and is also expecting a big year. 

'It should be a fun year'

There are 80 athletes on the girls roster, likely the largest team ever at Lakeland. That upward trend is encouraging to Kababik, because he had just 25 total three to four years ago. 

"A lot of girls run track in middle school, but when they get to high school, you can choose from soccer, softball, tennis and lacrosse,” he said. “This early, it is still tough to tell (from the new athletes) who will excel until we start to compete."

Even though track is largely an individual sport, Kababik is a true believer in the team concept. That means he will have to make difficult decisions later in the year when it comes to setting relay teams and sending athletes to regionals. For now, the team is practicing both indoors and outdoors, and athletes are able to use the high school’s fitness and swimming facilities to help train for competition.  

“It should be a fun year, and we have a lot of very good athletes,” Kababik said.