By Al Muskewitz
White Plains’ Maddyn Conn wins twice at State Indoor Meet, edges girl in 1600 who ran her down in cross country championship
BIRMINGHAM – The day started for White Plains’ Maddyn Conn at the atypical time of 4:45 a.m. with her typical pre-race breakfast of Le’go-my-Eggo waffles and it ended with two trips to the winner’s stand.
The White Plains freshman won both races she ran Saturday in the State Indoor Track Championships at the Birmingham Crossplex. She took the girls Class 4A-5A 1600 in 5:20.39 and about two hours crossed the wire first in the 3200 in 11:35.31.
“It feels amazing, knowing all the hard work I put in has paid off,” Conn said.
She beat Bayside Academy’s Annie Midyett by three seconds in the 1600 and Katie Mae Coan of Lawrence County by 4.5 seconds in the 3200. Coan was third in the 1600.
The Lady Wildcats finished fifth in the team standings with 30 points. UMS-Wright won the title with 50, a half-point ahead of runner-up Bayside.
Conn was seeded first in both her races, but still felt nervous. Back in November, Midyett “just came out of nowhere” with 300 meters to go to nip her by 0.54 seconds in the Class 4A Cross Country Championship.
She made her move in the 1600 with about 200 meters to go and, similarly, made her move in the 3200 with about 400 to go.
“She races them both like a seasoned veteran,” White Plains coach John Moore said. “She was super patient. She drafted when she needed to, she pushed the pace when she felt like it. She paced herself throughout the race and saved her kick for the end.”
White Plains teammate Anna Strickland finished third in the 800 (2:23.52) after leading the first half of the race with no pacing help. She was running on tired legs when she got to the 1600 and after getting tripped up twice finished 10th (5:36.14).
“At that point my legs were toast,” she said. “Everything felt great except my legs. (In the 800) I may have started out too fast and then I got passed on the last lap. I wasn’t happy about that, but I had PRs and made it on the podium, so overall I think it was a pretty good day.”
Munford’s Dakota Frank capped his first year of running indoor with third-place finishes, personal bests and school records in the 1600 (4:29.81) and 3200 (9:55.38).
“It was good,” he said. “I always would rather take first, but third and two PRs for both races, I’m happy with that.”
Here are the athletes from around the area who scored points at the State Indoor Meet today:
CLASS 4A-5A
GIRLS
800: 3. Anna Strickland, White Plains, 2:23.52
1600: 1. Maddyn Conn, White Plains, 5:20.39
3200: 1. Maddyn Conn, White Plains, 11:35.31; 5. Isabella Foshee, Munford, 12:12.37
High Jump: 5. Angel Bozarth, White Plains, 4-10
Shot Put: 1. Kaylee Green, Cherokee County, 33-9
BOYS
1600: 3. Dakota Frank, Munford, 4:29.81
3200: 3. Dakota Frank, Munford, 9:55.38 [*** read more]
