Lidgett leads Redhawks; Lynch runs for BCLUW
DES MOINES — Grace Lidgett’s weekend didn’t go to plan.
The North Tama junior got back to the state co-ed track and field meet a year after medaling in the 3,000-meter run and the 1,500 run, but a foot injury meant she was going into the meet at less than 100 percent.
Lidgett gutted it out, running in four events over the course of the weekend.
“It feels really rewarding even if I wasn’t able to hit all the goals I really wanted,” Lidgett said. “Just to actually be able to still run here was a blessing because I didn’t know if I was going to be able to. Thank goodness I was able to get better just in time.”
She finished ninth in the 3,000 run, helped the Redhawks pick up an eighth place finish in the 4×800 relay and got her only medal of the weekend, and was a part of the distance medley relay team on Friday.
Saturday afternoon, she took part in the 1,500. Keeping up with the lead group for the first two laps, she ended up in a fight for eighth place on the last lap.
Jostling at the finish line with Nora Peterson of Alta-Aurelia, Lidgett missed out on a medal by just two-hundredths of a second with her time of 4 minutes, 55.49 seconds.
It was a brutal end to a grueling weekend for the junior, but she said it’s only motivated her more for next year — both in cross country and track.
“I’m already planning what I’m running during the weekend,” Lidgett said. “I can already think, ‘Oh, what am I going to start doing to train for cross country over the summer?'”
Jules Breakenridge ran in her final meet for the Redhawks with the 800 meter run, finishing in 19th place with a time of 2:30.70. The senior was also in the 4×800 relay and the distance medley relay for North Tama over the weekend.
Connor Lynch took part in the 800 for BCLUW and took a strong start out of the gates, but ended up finishing 21st with a 2:07.51.