Like other seniors on track and field teams, Trinity Lutheran’s Laina Klinge and Seymour’s Alexander Franklin are hoping the best is yet to come.

Both are preparing for their final meets this week before sectionals next week.

Klinge and the Cougars had a meet last night at Providence and will run Friday at Southwestern (Shelby) and Franklin ant the Owls will compete Thursday in the Hoosier Hills boys meet at Jeffersonville.

Klinge didn’t start running track at Trinity until her sophomore year.

“I had thought about doing it my freshman year, but I didn’t do it, and then me and a couple of my friends decided to do it (sophomore year),” she said.

This spring she has concentrated on the 200 and the 4×100 relay, and also ran the 100 a few times.

“I definitely like the curves better than the straightaway. I just think they are a little bit easier. It’s just more fun to not just run straight ahead,” Klinge said and mentioned her favorite lane is five.

She said she has to adjust to the wind on a lot of her races.

“Usually the wind comes across when we’re starting the 200. You push really hard on the curves and then you just have to do your best with the wind.”

Klinge said she is hoping to break 31 this week and again in the sectional. She said she enjoys running anchor in the relay.

“Handoffs are the most important thing. You can be a super-fast runner but without a good handoff it doesn’t really matter.” she said.

“We draw a line with the chalk (in the exchange zone) and always count our steps. Abby (Lorenz) is our third leg and she hands off to me. We were a little shaky with our handoffs at the beginning just because it was our first time but the more we’ve practiced the better it has worked.

Klinge continued speaking on the relay.

“I like the relay because it is not just yourself. It is definitely more fun doing it with everyone else, and we’re able to practice it together and then talk about it. It’s not just yourself doing it.

“Practice is super important. Every Wednesday we have recovery day so it’s good to have a mixture between hard practices and recovery to make sure we are not getting sore,” Klinge said. “In the meets we always try to push ourselves to get better. Whenever you are not running, it is fun to support everyone else and see them do their best. We want to get a PR every meet.”

Klinge played volleyball for four years at Trinity. She said she is glad she came out for track. “It’s fun to be part of a team that is not super competitive. It’s just more about having fun.”

She has been enjoyed being a student at Trinity. “I like the opportunities you are able to have. I’m in a lot of different clubs, and you don’t have to worry about tryouts and being cut on the sports teams.”

She will attend Purdue in the fall and study social ology.

Franklin has ran track and played football both for four years at Seymour.

This spring he has run the 110 high hurdles, long jumped and ran the 4×400 relay. He says the high hurdles are definitely his favorite event.

“I want to get the school record. It is 14.9, and my best time is 16.1,” Franklin said. “I just need to work on my technique. I’ve been working with a couple guys here, working on my starts and attacking the hurdles. I always lead with my right leg. I can three-step them. You’ve got to snap that leg down.”

He said he started running hurdles in middle school before he developed a hip injury.

“So I took off my freshman year, and we needed some hurdlers my sophomore year and I ended up getting back into it,” he said. “Last year I got down to the three-step and worked on attacking the hurdles, and it’s been going real well. I like lanes four and five.”

He said the hurdlers practice together and encourage each-other to work hard to improve their techniques and their times.

“Usually I’ll lead the hurdlers through stretching and stuff. We started off the season slow. We don’t run the whole thing at the start. We just work on technique and our starts. Once it gets nice weather out here we’re working as hard as we can.”

In the home meets he likes running on “Seymour Owls,’ which is printed in the fourth lane on the straightway.

“This is my favorite track,” he said. “I’m just comfortable here. This is where I ran my 16.1 this year.”

In the conference and sectional Franklin will have to run the trials to qualify for the finals.

He said, “In the trials and finals you’ve got to go.”

Franklin said last year he cut time from the trials to the finals in both the HHC and sectional and is hoping to duplicate those performances again this season.

He said he may also run the 4×4 relay and long jump at the HHC and sectional.

“I like the long jump a lot. I did a 17-81/2 so I did OK. I need to work on my steps. I like to run the third leg in the relay. You’re in lane one at that point, and you don’t have to worry about cutting in.”

He said he is glad he came out for track. “Even in the individual events you are part of the team. I like going around the track cheering everybody on. I like this environment.”

He hopes to run track in college and said he is still exploring his options.

Honor Roll

Boys

4×800 relay: Seymour 8:27, Brownstown 8:35

100: Hudson Fritz (BC) 11.0, Jack Pace (BC) 11.2, Jesse Mellencamp (S) 11.3, Mason Nugent (S) 11.38, Brayden Heath (C ) 12.06

200: Fritz (BC) 22.5, Mellencamp (S) 22.95, Pace (BC) 23.0, Nugent (S) 23.58, Josh Reynolds (C ) 25.99

400: Jaylan Johnson (S) 50.88, Garrett Driver (BC) 51.1, Kylan Ellerbe (S) 53.5

800: Michael Brooks (S) 2:03, Ty Tormoehlen (S) 2:04, Eli Crockett (BC) 2:08, Shane Ratliff (BC) 2:09, Dirk Crater (C) 2:13

1600: Shane Ratliff (BC) 4:35.9, Chance Ratliff (BC) 4:33.46, Dirk Crater (C ) 4:52, Michael Brooks (S) 4:57, JJ Myers (S) 4:58, Ty Tormoehlen (S) 5:02

3200: Chance Ratliff (BC) 10:05, Micah Jablonski (S) 10:25, Will Proffer (S) 10:50, Eli Crockett (BC) 11:01, Crater (C ) 11:05.Oliver Eggersman (TL) 11.48

110 hurdles: Jake Holland (TL) 15.56, Alex Franklin (S) 16.19, Isiah Engle (BC) 16.2, Jordan Quick (S) 16.6, Greg Hutcheson (BC) 17.0, Taylor Barger (C) 18.73

300 hurdles: Holland (TL) 42.03, Engle (BC) 42.53, Kyle Hileman (S) 43.29, Gregory Hutcheson (BC) 43.89, Alex Milliken (S) 43.81, Kaleb Moeller (C) 49.87Taylor Barger (C) 50.55

4×100 relay: Brownstown 43.98, Seymour 44.12, Crothersville 49.87

4×400 relay: Seymour 3:32, Brownstown 3:40

High jump: Jordan Quick (S) 5-10, Beau Napier (C ) 5-8, Nathaniel Conyer (BC) 5-4, Trevor Branaman (BC) 5-0

Long jump: Johnson (S) 20-6, Pace (BC) 19-13/4, Napier (C) 17-4

Shot put: Jaden Disque (BC) 45-10, Boone Nicholson (S) 45-8, Curtis Burke (S) 45-3, Isaac Hutchinson (BC) 45-11/2, Reynolds (C ) 36-6

Discus: Hutchinson (BC) 139, Owen Kruse (S) 138-8, Disque (BC) 136-10, Curtis Burke (S) 131-10

Pole vault: Jadrix Zumhingst (S) 11-0, Bryce Peak (BC) 9-0.

Girls

4×800 relay: Seymour 10:57.89, Brownstown 11.54.12

100: Kenzi Henkle (S) 13.21, Hailey Blair (BC) 13.3, Kaydence Miller (TL) 13.72, Emalee Goss (TL) 14.42, Kori Ault (BC) 14.9

200: Henkle (S) 27.37, Ava Blomenberg (TL) 29.68, Addison Darlage (BC) 30.0, Ault (BC) 30.9, Sophie Wischmeier (BC) 31.0, Tori Lokey (BC) 30.50

400: Katie Malone (TL) 1:03.99, Sydney Montgomery (S) 1:05.57, Wischmeier (BC) 1:07.66, Cheyenne Campbell (TL) 1:09.64, Ellie Black (BC) 1:12.05

800: Lana Wisler (BC) 2:35.9, Kelly Beavers (S) 2:37.07, Kaylee Steward (BC) 2:47.97

1600: Vivienne Siefker (S) 5:37.38, Wisler (BC) 5:46, Steward (BC) 6:17.84

3200: Siefker (S) 11.56.09, Wisler (BC) 13.31.38, Trinity Cody (BC) 15:28.90, Chelsie Combs (BC) 15:57.51

100 hurdles: Ella Brock (S) 18.39, Noe McPherson (BC) 18.8, Ella Nehrt (BC) 19.70.

300 hurdles: Brock (S) 51.53, McPherson (BC) 55.01, Nehrt (BC) 55.12

4×100 relay: Seymour 52.69, Brownstown 53.89, Trinity Lutheran 56.31

4×400 relay: Seymour 4:29.84, Brownstown 4:32.53, Trinity Lutheran 4:43.58

High jump: Montgomery (S) 5-2, Goss (TL) 5-0, Wisler (BC) 4-10

Long jump: Bair (BC) 15-71/2, Kennedy Burnette (S) 15-21/2, Myrlanda Beaubrun (S) 14-11, Black (BC) 11-93/4

Shot put: Olivia Fritz (BC) 34-2, Bailey Bonde (TL) 33-6, Willow Nowland (S) 30-113/4, Jenna Boknecht (BC) 28-1

Discus: Fritz (BC) 107-8, Bonde (TL) 92-10, Keira Linville (S) 84-10, Alexa Wheeles (BC) 92-1, Hali Burton (C ) 76-10

Pole vault: AnnMarie Shuler (S) 7-0, Lokey (BC) 7-0, Black (BC) 6-6.