Most people go through life never emphasizing how much one second matters; it can be the difference between winning or earning a place in the record books.
Lauren Strapp, senior cross-country runner, realized how important one second can be on Saturday, Sept. 18, during the Wolfpack Invitational. Strapp lined up at the starting line ready to run the 5 kilometer race, never anticipating that it would be one of the biggest races of her cross-country career.
She had a long week with grueling workouts and felt fatigued. Little did she know that she would persevere to run the race in only 18:31. Running a 5K in 18:31 is a significant achievement that people who don’t follow cross-country could never understand. However, Strapp’s time of 18:31 gave her the new, fastest time in the Leesville school record books.
The previous record, 18:32, had been set by Laura Hamm in 1998. Strapp beat the record by only one second. Just one second gave Strapp the title of the best endurance female runner in Leesville history.
Strapp started running track in the second grade and has come a long way to be where she is today. When stepping on to the track as a freshman, Strapp ran the 5k in 19:46. She has overcome obstacles to cut over one minute off her time.
Injury set Strapp back during her sophomore and junior years. When joking about how she should stop hurting herself she said, “Yeah, I am going to try not to do that.” But Strapp overcame injury running hard her senior year, and now she owns the 5k record.
Strapp continues to think about running track during her college years. Coaches from William & Mary, UNC-Chapel Hill, and even Wake Forest have talked to her about becoming a member of their respective teams. Strapp is excited about the possibilities of her running for a high caliber division one school.
Strapp now only has two major goals she would like to accomplish during her track career. “I want to run a mile under five minutes and becoming an All-American in college would be pretty cool, too.
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