The sound of the gun shooting off, sending senior Femi Nilson into a full sprint on April 19 in the KU relays. The anticipation for track season began as the smell of sweat from runners’ foreheads as they stepped up to the line flowed through the atmosphere on the Liberty High School track. The feeling Jace Hicks felt as he crossed the finish line on April 12. On the sprint team are seniors Aaron Black, Femi Ajayi Nilson, Andrew Fiaco, Lincoln Hare, freshman Jace Hicks, and junior Colt Nolin.
With nearly all of the sprint team being seniors, a few things will change once they leave. With their time here these current seniors raced in relays and medaled at state multiple times. They have competed in highly competitive competitions and finished in the top three many times throughout the years. Underclassmen will have to step up and create a new relay team, which Nolin and Hicks are already a part of.
“My favorite moment was at Sectionals when we ran one of the fastest times in Missouri history in the 4×100 and got the school record,” Black said. “I’d also add medaling twice at state in the 4×100 and 4×200.”
Last year, one of the 4×100 relay teams consisted of current seniors Femi Nilson, Aaron Black, Andrew Fiacco and Jaxon Hicks. This year, his younger brother, a freshman, Jace Hicks has taken his place and is following in Jaxon’s footsteps as one of the fastest runners on the team.
Nilson plans on continuing his track career in college in the fall, but has not yet committed to a school.
According to the NCAA, “Nearly eight million students currently participate in high school athletics in the U.S. Approximately 530,000 compete as NCAA athletes, and just a select few move on to compete at the professional or Olympic level.”
With this being their last season, many of the seniors have spoken about experiencing strong feelings regarding leaving Liberty and the track team behind.
“I am sad that I won’t be able to run and compete with my friends anymore,” senior Lincoln Hare said, “My favorite memory is having a water gun fight at state last year.”
Nilson broke a personal 100 meter record this year with a time of 10.89. According to the Marathon Handbook, this equates to about 19 MPH. Last year, Black broke his own by running an 11.16 and Hare did the same in the 200 meter run with a 22.72.
While there are just 19 seniors on the varsity track team, they made a big difference according to teammates by lifting the team up and encouraging them to try their best.
“The track team will be different once the seniors leave because they made a big impact to the team, especially with relays,” junior sprinter Melanie Hinojos said.
The upperclassmen left their marks on the younger members, and assisted the team when winning relays and other important races.
“The seniors really made an impact this season by always supporting us through the hard workouts and we all really appreciate them,” junior sprinter Amari Morrison said.
Oftentimes in high school sports, upperclassmen play a crucial role in leadership, so younger athletes will be required to fill these shoes moving forward.
According to Rowlandhall.org, “High school sports create opportunities for mentorship, where upperclassmen are able to guide and offer help to younger athletes not just in the sport itself but also in life skills such as leadership, discipline, and responsibility.”
To find out more about the track team or where to find their upcoming meets, go to their twitter @https://x.com/LIBERTYTF, http://athletics.liberty.k12.mo.us/jaysmtrack, or on instagram @Lhsjays_tf.
