By JERRY BYRD, Journal Sports
When Byrd juniors Jenna Key and Hudson Roberts step to the line tomorrow evening in the girls’ 3200m at the LHSAA State Indoor Track and Field Championships in Baton Rouge, they probably won’t be thinking about how far they’ve come, or the life lessons learned. And they probably won’t be thinking about the 2022 LSU Last Chance Qualifier, where the teammates put on a show for the Carl Maddox Fieldhouse crowd.
Instead, they will be thinking about the task at hand and implementing the race strategy given to them by Byrd head coach Juan Plaza.
Although she has state championship experience, Key will be competing in her first indoor state championship. She missed it a year ago due to a freak accident at practice when she suffered a severe sprain after her foot landed on an errant lacrosse ball.
Roberts did run at last year’s LHSAA State Indoor Meet. She finished fifth with a time of 11:44.18, but it wasn’t as fast as she ran two weeks before the state meet, at the LSU Last Chance Meet where she lunged past Key in the last meter of the 3200 meters. She won with a school record time of 11:26.95.
Key broke Roberts’ record earlier this month, running an 11:23.21.
Although she missed the entire regular outdoor season last spring as she worked to return from her ankle sprain, Key was able to win the District 1-5A 3200m championship (12:06), and finished as the runner in the Region I-5A meet behind the Gatorade Louisiana Cross Country Player of the Year award winner, Ruston’s Lily Garrett, (11:49). But it was the third-place finish at the LHSAA Outdoor Meet which brought tears of joy and gave Key a bronze medal more meaningful than any gold she has ever received.
Cross country brought more adversity for the Byrd duo to overcome. Roberts was completely out after suffering a stress fracture which caused her to become acquainted with crutches and then a boot for the better part of four months.
Key limped through the better part of the cross country campaign before ending the season with gutsy performances at both the regionals and then the LHSAA State Cross Country Meet at Natchitoches in November.
“I’m so excited,” Key said. “I’ve enjoyed indoor so much this year. I have a really good mindset going in. I’m going to have fun and see what I can do. It’s my junior year and it’s my first indoor state meet, so I’m excited.”
Her teammate shares in her excitement.
“It has definitely been a long road of recovery and it’s definitely not over but it’s so good to be back racing – especially being out for so long – it just makes it that much sweeter to be back,” Roberts said.
Roberts has used the indoor season as a means to an end.
“Indoor season has been about getting back to where I was and training and preparing for outdoor state a lot more,” Roberts said. “So to be able to qualify for state indoor is a gift and I am really excited to race this weekend.”
Perhaps the only person more excited to watch the two Lady Jackets run is their coach.
“It has been a journey of regaining confidence as well as physical strength,” said Plaza. “Despite all the adversity, they both find themselves in the state finals. As far as I’m concerned, they have already won at the game of perseverance. I love both ladies like my own daughters. We will continue on this exciting rebuilding journey. Their story certainly will not end on Saturday in Baton Rouge.”
Key is scheduled to run the 1600m, where she is the No. 4 seed (5:21), and the 3200m, where she is the No. 3 seed. Roberts is seeded No. 10 (12:16) in the 3200m and will run a leg on the Jackets’ 4×800 relay.
Plaza had one male qualify, triple jumper Xavier Anderson, who is seeded No. 7 with a best jump of 42-4.75.
Contact Jerry at sbjjerrybyrd@gmail.com