It was the final regular season track meet of the year. Corry runner Connor Sterling had one last chance to qualify for the district meet. Connor would be running the 100 meter dash while going up against some great competition. His main goal was to make districts with a great time but also win his individual heat. Connor’s personal best time was 11.60 seconds and there were sprinters in his heat who ran an outrageous 10.9 second 100 meter dash…

They arrived at the meet and Connor’s nerves set in. He walked around the field with his headphones on and began to do explosive drills and stretch. The 100 meter was the second event, so Connor was up relatively soon. As he stretched, he watched the hurdle races go on and then a voice over the microphone said, “3rd and final call for boys 100 meter dash.”

Connor headed over to the starting line and put his running spikes on. He was in the final heat which was the fastest. The other heats went by and Connor got his blocks ready and loaded into them as the official said, “On your marks!”

He took multiple deep breaths and waited for the set. The official yelled “Set!” and the gun sounded.

He took off and was right in the mix of the other 5 runners but the other runners slightly gained distance on him and they crossed the finish line. Connor was 4th out of 6 in his heat and only ended up with a 11.63 for his time. He felt defeated and went back to the tent with his hood over his head.

Minutes later, an announcement came over the microphone that said who made the 100 meter dash finals. The finals was the fastest 6 times from the prelims. Connor heard his name and his head popped up. He may have only gotten 4th in his heat, but he made the finals with 6th fastest time overall. He had one more chance at glory. He began to stretch again and prepare.

A few minutes went by and they called the six runners over to the starting line for the 100 meter dash final. He got on the track and loaded into his blocks. He said a quick prayer before the official told the runners to set.

“Set!” the official shouted.

“Pow!” goes the gun and off goes Connor and the 5 other runners.

Connor felt his block start was better than ever as he was flying down the straightaway. This time, there were no runners in front of Connor and he pushed all the way to the end. He now finished first and immediately jumped in the air in celebration. He checked his time and he shattered his personal record and the district standard running an immaculate 10.7 100 meter dash. Connor had accomplished all his goals today, and the other runners gave Connor congratulations.

Much later, he was asked how he ran such a fabulous time and he simply said, “When you really focus on a goal you can accomplish anything.”

Connor was now a district qualifier and he was ecstatic.