Junior sprinter Ryan Lacefield has the passion and perseverance to maintain the winning legacy that the Carson High School girls track and field team is known for. Her efforts would help the Colts win their 6th consecutive City Section Championship.
“It feels good because people look up to you,” Lacefield said. “I just like feeling like I accomplished something and letting everyone look at me as a good role model.”
This season was Lacefield’s second year as a varsity runner and her second consecutive year as the City Section Champion of the 200m, having a 25.76-second performance this year. As a sophomore, Lacefield’s winning run was 24.99 seconds.
“This year, I just have to hold my title,” Lacefield said during the 2019 CIF City Section track and field Championships. “I felt like I could have ran faster, I don’t think I was mentally prepared today.”
While Lacefield enjoys running the 200m, she enjoys excelling at the 400m dash. Any track and field athlete knows about the high level of strategy it takes to win that event. In the Marine League Championship Final, she ran a 57.56s time, taking first place. She improved to 57.42s to get the City Section title.
However, Lacefield ran a better time when she reached the CIF state preliminary round with 56.99s. She had the 18th best time in the state this year.
“I feel more accomplished when I’m running the 400m because it’s such a harder race to master, it’s hard,” Lacefield said. “It’s just more mental when it comes to the 400, you have to be strong for that race.”
Along with competing to be one of the top sprinters in the City Section, Lacefield was taking Advance Placement Literature, History and Psychology. She noted how this year has been challenging due to the classes she was taking and how being a student athlete requires “a lot of dedication.”
“It’s so many times when you just want to give up,” Lacefield said. “Everybody has had that before, including myself. You just got to keep going.”
Lacefield, along with Kyla Blockett, Desiree Hansford, and Kaitlyn Williams represented Carson in the 4x100m event, pacing the City Section with a 48.61s time in the championship. In the CIF State preliminaries, they ran a 47.54s time, qualifying them for the State Finals, where they improved to 47.47s and came in sixth place.
Lacefield is also a member of the 4x400m squad, along with Jada Love, Skye Barkley, and Alaysia Halley. They came in second at the City championships with 4:03.23s time, leading them to run a 3:59.96s time in the State Preliminaries.
Through her time at Carson, she learned to never give up and to continue thriving even when things get difficult. Having confidence and heart is key to being successful. The support she received from her family, coaches, and friends are a key highlight for her.
“I don’t know where I’d be without them,” Lacefield said. “When your family, your friends, the coaches are yelling at you from the stands, watching you, like really cheering you on, that feels good.”
