Last May, the Lawrence High girls track team won the state championship. This was the first title for the team since 2015, and the school’s 108th title.

The team was lead by Coach Jackie Hood, who knew they would be in the top three going in, and believed they could secure the win.

“I was so proud of the girls and the way they showed up when it mattered the most,” Hood said. “Most of them returned, and so we’re proud of what they did, but they’re not satisfied.”

Track is a very intensive sport, and the team has to work all year to stay in-shape.

“Track season starts the day after track ends,” Hood said. “They go to volleyball, they go to weights, they go to summer running, conditioning. It’s a year round thing.”

This year, senior Evann Seratte was named student athlete of the year.

“It was awesome,” Hood said, in regards of Seratte’s award. “It was very well deserved.”

Hood was also named girls track coach of the year for Kansas Cross Country Track and Field Coaches association. He admitted to be being embarrassed of his win.

“I have trouble accepting compliments,” Hood said. “I’m so proud of the girls and what they did. It was nice for me and I’ll take it and I’ll smile in the picture, but it’s all about them, truthfully.”

As a coach, Hood likes to win, but it’s more important to him to be a positive influences for his team.

“I know I tell it to them all the time, and I don’t know if they believe me or not because they love winning,” Hood said. “But truly if we’re going to be successful as a program, those kids should hopefully leave Lawrence High School better than they entered. In 20 or 30 years when they look back, they should say ‘track was a positive thing in my life.’ If that happens, we’ve been successful. The state titles are nice, but that’s not the main goal.”

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