During her first two years of high school track, Haley Goines had fared pretty well, qualifying for the state meet in the 100 hurdles and winning a county championships in two events.
As a junior, though, she took her game to a higher level.
Goines was an all-around force for Center Grove, and she is the Daily Journal’s 2017 Athlete of the Year for girls track & field.
“I had a better mindset this year,” Goines said. “I believed in myself more, and it helped me get to where I needed to be.”
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryThe improved mindset, coupled with a ramped-up lifting and training regimen, helped Goines separate herself from the pack this spring.
She was named the outstanding performer at the Johnson County meet, where she finished with three firsts and a second, and then followed up by winning sectional titles in all four of her events — high jump, long jump, 100 hurdles and the 4×100 relay.
Goines wound up finishing 11th in the state in the hurdles, while she and 4×100 teammates Allison Utterback, Julia Riley and Kiyah Yeast were 10th.
By the time the season was over, Goines had put her name in the Center Grove record book in three events. The 4×100 relay quartet established a new school standard with a time of 48.68 seconds, and Goines also lowered the 100 hurdles mark to 14.8 seconds.
Her personal highlight, though, came when she shattered another school mark by going 18 feet, 3 inches in the long jump at the sectional meet.
“That was definitely my favorite moment of the track season,” Goines said, “breaking that record and just getting out there past 18 feet.”
Having someone who could win four events was a blessing for Trojan head coach Wes Dodson, though he wishes Goines was allowed to compete in more than four.
“The greatest thing about Haley is that she can do any event,” Dodson said. “The rules are you can do only four, but she could realistically probably do 10 or 11 at a high level.”
Looking forward, Goines will settle for doing her current four at an even higher level. With three of the four legs of the 4×100 returning, hopes are high for a podium finish in that event — and Goines wants to reach the top of the podium in the hurdles.
“In my heart, I know I can win,” she said. “I’m expecting myself to win, but it’s going to be hard. … I’m going to have to practice extremely hard to get my times down.”
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Haley Goines set three different school records at Center Grove this spring:
100 hurdles;14.8 seconds
4×100 relay;48.68 seconds
Long jump;18 feet, 3 inches
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The 2017 All-Johnson County Team for girls track and field:
Micheala Adams, Whiteland junior: Won sectional title in shot put and finished 18th in that event at state meet. … Also qualified for regional in discus after finishing second at sectional meet.
Hanna Anderson, Greenwood junior: Won county, conference and sectional titles in 400-meter dash, finishing 17th in state. … regional qualifier in 4×800 relay and county and conference runner-up in 100 meters.
Val Clark, Center Grove senior: Won 1,600 and 3,200 meters at Johnson County meet. … Qualified for regional in both events and finished 24th in 1,600 at state meet.
Kloie Doublin, Franklin junior: Won Mid-State Conference titles in 100 meters and 4×400 relay, finishing second in long jump and 400. … regional qualifier and county runner-up in 100 meters.
Reagan Emberton, Whiteland sophomore: Finished seventh in discus at state meet with a toss of 127 feet, 5 inches after winning sectional and regional titles. … Earned county championships in discus and shot put.
Kylie Falcone, Center Grove senior: Placed third at state meet in the pole vault after establishing new meet records at Franklin Sectional (11 feet, 6 inches) and Franklin Regional (12 feet).
Haley Goines, Center Grove junior: Set school records in 100 hurdles (14.8) and long jump (18-3) and was part of record-setting 4×100 relay that finished 10th in state. … Won sectional titles in four events and placed 11th in 100 hurdles at state meet.
Ally Parramore, Franklin senior: County and sectional champion in 300 hurdles and part of Grizzly Cubs’ 4×400 relay team that also won both meets. … Runner-up to Goines in 100 hurdles at county and sectional.
Julia Riley, Center Grove sophomore: Part of Trojans’ 4×100 relay that won county and sectional titles and placed 10th at state meet. … Regional qualifier in 200-meter dash after finishing third at sectional.
Krista Robinson, Greenwood senior: Finished career with victories in 800-meter run at Johnson County, Mid-State Conference and Franklin Sectional meets. … Helped Woodmen reach regional in 4×800 relay.
Olivia Weston, Greenwood junior: Finished 13th in high jump at state meet after winning Johnson County, Mid-State Conference and Franklin Regional championships in that event.
Kiyah Yeast, Center Grove freshman: Finished eighth in state at 100 meters after winning county, sectional and regional titles. … County and sectional champion in 200, and part of Trojans’ 4×100 and 4×400 relay teams.
Honorable mention
Emma Beavins, Franklin; Emily Bonser, Greenwood; Rachel Chan, Center Grove; Kerrigan Miller, Whiteland; Chloe Sanders, Whiteland; Emma Treibic, Franklin; Allison Utterback, Center Grove
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