THE SPORTS DESK
Prep Winter Track Notepad: Wildcats’ Morton may take talents another step
The winter track and field season for Meshala Morton is shaping up to be one of change.
The Mountain View junior standout won Commonwealth District championships in the 55 and 300 meters and last season. The All-Area performer also excelled in the 100 and 200 during the spring outdoor season.
But Wildcats coach Dave Davis said he wants to increase Morton’s distance.
Davis said that if Morton also runs the 500 meters during the winter, as well as the 400 and 800 in the spring, it will increase her chances of earning a college scholarship.
“When you’re a high school coach, the deal is you’ve got to start looking at what’s best for them to get ready to go to the collegiate level,” Davis said. “Sometimes what’s best for them isn’t what they want to do.”
Davis said he fought a similar battle with former Mountain View star runner Kimberley Ficenec, who went on to become a state champion in the 1,000 meters and a national champion in the 800.
Ficenec is now a freshman at the University of Alabama.
“I think Morton can be a 400/800 girl,” Davis said. “She’s just as talented as Kimmy.”
Davis said Morton is taking a bit of a break as she recovers from a minor lower-leg injury. She’s expected to return sometime after holiday vacation.
Davis said his entire team has yet to get going.
He hasn’t seen whether triple jumper Donald Osafo can repeat his leap of 44 feet from last spring, or if high jumper Andre Bernhard can still leap 6 feet, 4 inches.
Davis has seen senior Brandon Watts run the 500 in 1:08. Jeanne Rouse has impressed Davis with times of 1:20 in the 500 and 42 seconds in the 300.
—Taft Coghill Jr.
