By Jett Johnson
Sports Editor
Track & Field had a historic competition at the 2024 Great Midwest Indoor Championships with a total of six records broken.
Lucas Baggott, junior men’s track & field athlete, broke the 400m dash record. Ariana Bilderback, senior women’s track & field athlete, set a school record in the triple jump.
Molly Sims, junior women’s track & field athlete, set a new Trevecca school record in weight throw with a throw of 13.14m.
Dayton Floyd, freshman men’s track & field athlete, set two new records. First is an all-conditions Trevecca school record in the long jump, and the other is an indoor school record high jump.
Baggott is excited about the year the team has had and is enjoying the season. “The season has been phenomenal in more ways than one. We have had almost every person set personal records this season so far and the culture we are building is just so fun to be around,” said Baggott.
Coming off of setting that record, Baggott is feeling good about his individual performances this year.
“My season has been my best indoor season to date. I improved upon my indoor 400m school record, got a new school record in the 300m, and anchored our 4x400m relay to a new school record as well. I was the first Trevecca sprinter in history to make finals so that was also super exciting for me and the program to finally break that barrier,” said Baggott.
Baggott understands how mental toughness comes into play in this sport.
“Mental toughness is probably the most important aspect of this sport. The most talented athlete does not always win in a race but I promise you that the more mentally tough athlete will always win,” said Baggott.
Baggott explains where his head is before breaking a new record.
“So every time you beat your personal record in many track events, especially the 400, you have to face the reality that what you are about to do will hurt more than you have ever hurt before. At least personally that’s all that I get nervous about. I know that being a fierce competitor I will either run fast or not no matter who I line up against, but knowing I will probably throw up from the lactic acidosis does make me nervous beforehand. But having the confidence behind me knowing that it is something I can absolutely handle is what drives me to win races and run fast,” said Baggott.
Ben Carr, junior men’s track & field athlete, loves the preparation aspect that he’s capitalized on this season.
“I would say it’s all about the little things. Everything adds up. Sleep, diet, hydration, and recovery techniques all play their part in the process. The final lead-up days of training are also important. A few light runs to shake any lactic out is crucial. On race day I just try to find the right balance of supporting my teammates that are competing in other events and staying off my feet as much as possible. And again, hydration and diet are key,” said Carr.
Carr is optimistic about the year and really appreciates the historic performance they had.
“The season is going phenomenally well for our team this year. There are a ridiculous number of personal bests, and even School Record performances, in every meet we’ve gone to this season. Over the past 2 meets alone we’ve had school records from Lucas Baggott, Molly Sims, Sammi Roberts, Dayton
Floyd, Ariana Bilderback, and our men’s 4×400 relay team. Our team has also significantly grown in numbers this year which is great to see. It’s great to see us represented in so many of the events. The best part is that it’s still so early in the season. It leaves us all very excited for the next few weeks,” said Carr.