Coming out of the last few meets with successful results may
have looked easy for the UCLA track team, but the difficulty will rise as the Bruins compete in the Texas A&M; Aggie Invitational this weekend.
“It’ll be the highest level of competition we’ll face the entire indoor season,” said women’s head coach John Henry Johnson.
Leading up to their toughest meet, the Bruins have faced minor obstacles – including a couple athletes being affected by the flu and cold – but they are still determined to strive.
“I’m not really worried about (the competition), but I just hope I can get healthy,” said senior thrower Ida Storm. “I know some other people have been sick but I don’t think it will impact the results of the competition. Hopefully, we’ll be ready to go.”
Despite the setbacks, the Bruins have taken certain measures during practice to ensure their ability to compete this weekend. Some, like Storm, found it useful to maintain their regular practice routine and technique. Others, however, believed some changes were necessary in order to prepare for the upcoming competition.
“It’s been a pretty consistent mentality in the past few months in terms of technique and competition approach, but in the past week I’ve done a little bit lighter on weight training in an attempt to hopefully feel a little more rested for the meet,” said redshirt sophomore thrower Nicholas Scarvelis.
Johnson also mentioned that an additional strategy the Bruins have implemented during practice is working on their speed in sprints.
Although the cold and flu season may have weakened some of the athletes’ immune systems, it did not affect the team’s morale. The athletes see this competition as an opportunity to see how they might perform if they qualify for nationals.
“For the bigger picture of the team, one way you could view (this meet) is as our first test with a lot of top competition,” Scarvelis said. “You could say this is a preview about how we are going to look going into indoor nationals in about a month.”