Lady Dragon hurdled injury to get to state meet

Earning a trip to the 2015 state track and field meet with a broken toe was just a bit too much to ask.

So, when Carroll’s Madysen Hunter entered this season after recovering from last season’s mishap just prior to the regional meet, she made the most of it.

Hunter made it to the regional finals last year but just couldn’t overcome the issues associated with the freak stairway injury suffered after qualifying in the area meet.

But this year’s appearance in Austin for the 6A UIL meet was an opportunity to fulfill the potential Hunter has been working to display on the track.

Hunter was able to run her personal best in the 300m hurdles earlier in the year at the Dallas Jesuit meet.

She was also a member of the 4x200m and 4x400m relay teams.

She turned in a 42.6 for the first time at Jesuit but has run that PR three other times since then.

Hunter’s time was the fifth-best qualifying time for the state meet, but Lady Dragons track coach Renea Osborne said she was looking at a better result than fifth.

Hunter finished fourth at state, running a 42.84, improving on her qualifying placement.

“She definitely has a chance to be on the medal stand,” Osborne said prior to the meet.

For Hunter, her goal was to just see improvement.

“I just want to run faster than 42.6,” Hunter said about her goal at the state meet.

The promise Hunter has demonstrated has also been recognized from those outside of Texas. Hunter will run track as a sprinter and hurdler for Notre Dame next year.

“I’ll run whatever they ask of me,” she said, obviously excited. “I was pretty open about schools, but Notre Dame is where I really wanted to go.”

And if running a personal best wasn’t enough, Hunter was able to add icing to the cake by setting the Carroll school record in the 200m at 24.8.

More icing was added by the previous record-holder being Hunter’s older sister, Callie.

“She was happy for me,” Hunter noted.

Running seems natural for Hunter and her entire family. Jumping hurdles also seems natural.

When Hunter began running hurdles in sixth grade, she felt it was a natural transition from her other love — riding horses and show jumping.

“Hurdles just seemed to make sense,” she said.

This story was originally published May 17, 2016 at 12:11 PM with the headline "Lady Dragon hurdled injury to get to state meet."