Brownstown Central’s Camryn Thompson recently set the school record in the 300 hurdles with a time of 47.46.

Dylan Wallace | The Tribune

When Brownstown Central senior Camryn Thompson was getting ready for her 300 hurdles race on Tuesday night at Blevins Memorial Stadium against Eastern (Pekin), she wasn’t feeling up for the task.

“I was going into the race thinking this might be a hot mess,” Thompson said.

But as she rounded the corner, Thompson felt better than she thought. So she kicked it into high gear, taking home first place in the race with a time of 47.46, beating the next closest finisher by five seconds — Pekin’s Allysun Goss at 52.05.

“I got around the curve about 100 meters left, and I still had so much power and energy, which is very rare at that part of the race, so I just went for it,” she said.

After crossing the finish line, her coach told Thompson she might’ve broken the school record. She told Thompson to wait for the official results, and she was right.

Thompson’s time of 47.46 set the new school record for Brownstown Central girls track and field in the 300 hurdles, which was previously 47.7.

“I was more in shock,” Thompson said of how she felt when she found out. “I was more excited a couple hours after because I was so shocked in the moment.”

Thompson realized she was within reach of the record during her junior track season. Her personal best time last year was 49.6.

After running cross-country in the fall and playing basketball in the winter, Thompson turned her focus to the hurdles just recently this spring in practice.

“We’ve been doing a lot of 300 hurdles workouts based on trying to get this record, so they’ve been really helpful,” she said.

But just a week before Tuesday, Thompson ran a 53 in the 300 hurdles, so she was not expecting to drop 7 seconds just one week later.

“I was not expecting to run a 47 and beat the record on Tuesday. It just kind of happened,” she said.

Thompson also runs the 100 hurdles, which she also took home first place in on Tuesday in 17.66.

The school record for the 100 hurdles is 16 flat, and Thompson’s PR is 16.64. She would like to try to go for it, but with less room to cut down time on the track, Thompson knows it’ll be tough.

Since she broke the 300 record so early in the season, does Thompson want to try to re-break her own record?

“Oh yeah, for sure,” she said.

Thompson said her preference on the 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles fluctuates between meets.

There are pros and cons of each event for Thompson.

“It changes every meet,” she said. “In the 300, I feel so confident, but it’s also painful. The 100 is quick and easy, but it’s also a lot technically harder.”

No matter how painful the 300 can be, Thompson knows her name will be in the record books next to that event for the foreseeable future.

“It feels really exciting,” she said. “I’m really proud of myself.”

The BC senior has been a regional qualifier in both hurdle events over her last two track seasons. Last year, Thompson came really close to qualifying for the state meet.

Whether or not she reaches any more time records, being in Bloomington on June 3 is what she wants as her final destination.

“State,” she said promptly. “That’s the goal.”