BROWNSTOWN — Hudson Fritz has had a goal winning races and receiving blue ribbons for as long as he can remember.

“Track is my passion,” he said after he won the 100 and 200-meter dashes at the Mid-Southern Conference meet at Silver Creek on May 9.

Fritz took, a senior at Brownstown Central, took a big step up in his running career when he signed to run track at Hanover College last week.

He began running tack in sixth grade and has always been a sprinter. He will compete in the 100, 200 and with the Braves’ 4×100 relay in the Bloomington North Regional Thursday night.

Fritz said he prefers the 100 over the 200.

“I like the short aspects of it. The 200 gets kind of painful at the end.”

His best time in the 100 came at the Mid-Southern at Silver Creek with a time of 11.14.

“The start is really important,” he said. “You need to get out as fast and as hard as you can. If you don’t get out, it’s going to be tough. You’re going to be behind, and you’ve got to try and catch up.

“In the 200 I’m just trying to get every extra ounce that I have left for that last 100 meters. “

Braves coach Derrick Koch said Fritz seemed to find an extra gear for the final 80 meters of the 200 at the MSC when he came from behind to win the race.

Fritz said what made the 200 hard that day was having to run trials and finals in both the 100 and 200. He said during the regular season meets his events are spaced out enough that he has enough recovery time to be prepared for his next race.

“I hadn’t run two 200s in a meet before this year,” he said. “Being able to run the turn is probably the most important part. If you cannot run the turn, you’re not going to be very fast.”

Fritz said the 4×100 is his favorite relay. “I like how it is a real fast, quick pace. Sometimes our handoffs look beautiful.” He runs anchor on the 4×100.

“We mark our distance from where we are supposed to take off, and I just try to get out as fast as I can and get the handoff. It’s just an all-out sprint from there.”

Last year he was named the Braves’ most valuable sprinter. “This team is really special. We have hard workers and when everybody gets together, we are all excited and the energy is there and we’re a hard team to beat,” he said.

He helped the Braves place first in the MSC the last two years.

Fritz has enjoyed being a student at the high school. “I like the teachers, they’re really nice, the classes are small, and it’s on a personnel level so you can get a lot of things done and questions asked.

“I’m real pumped about getting over there and showing them what I have.”

Koch said he feels like Fritz can excel at Hanover because of his work ethic.

“Hudson has been working hard for a long time, so it’s exciting to see him kind of culminate his senior year with the signing to Hanover, so I’m excited for him.

Koch said Fritz has been a vital part of the BCHS program. “Whenever you look at our conference points, he was able to get (was important). We’ll definitely miss him next year. He’ll be missed quite a bit because of the points he gets, and because of his leadership, too.

“He’s a good kid and I’m excited for him and for his future. I’m glad to see him move on and want to participate in track. Academically, he’s going to be fine, and with his athletic ability he’s going to be fine there, too.”

Fritz said he chose Hanover College because, “I’m a homebody and I like that it is sort of close to home, about an hour away from where I live. I like how it is a small campus, and it will be easy to navigate.”