Below is some data that varsity athletes might find helpful.
Q: What is it?
A: It is a chart that tells us what marks our top athletes have, where it ranks them in the state, and how that translates to previous state qualifiers
Q: My name is/is not on this list. Why?
A: The names on the list are the top performers in each event. Events containing multiple athlete names signify that more than one athlete is in the top 50 for division 5A, and are thus in striking distance (the further you are from #18, the harder it is)
Q: Why under M/F (male/female) are some marked in yellow?
A: For reasons unknown to me, these events are not in the official rankings. The ranking for these events is where the mark would place the team if the mark were officially ranked.
Q: Under Rank, why are some blue?
A: This signifies that the mark has ranked the athlete/relay in the top 50
Q: What do the last three columns on the right mean?
A: These are the marks which were the last qualifying mark for the state meet. Looking at these gives you some idea of what you have to achieve by May 12th.
Q: How do I move my name up in the rankings?
A: Great question...Practice everyday, work as hard as you can, work as smart as you can, eat lots of good food, drink lots of water, sleep 8-9 hours a night, and want it more than anyone else.
Q: Any other suggestions?
A: Aiming for our record board is nice, but we need to aim past what our teammates achieve and focus on besting our opponent. For example, as I mentioned in our meeting today our previous Long Jump record has been broken by 4 girls this year. This is great, and I mean no discredit to these ladies because they are doing exactly what we ask of them, but we have to aim past those distance of our run record board because look at what there places are in the state: 22, 23, 28, 31....They may beat our school record, which again is great, but they fall short of state qualification (using the last three columns one could see these girls will most likely have to jump in the higher half of 16ft to qualify for state). Making the board will be an honor, but believe me when I tell you that it will fall far short of the feeling of competing at the state meet.
Q: Where can I see these rankings for myself?
(Make sure you change the dropdown to for division to 5A for the most accurate rankings)
Start looking at this data, and figuring in your mind what you must do before the end of the season. Set some goals. Write them down. Post them in a place you have to look at them and think about them. Reward yourself when you get achieve or get closer to your goal; do not punish yourself when you take steps back from your goals, but rather look within yourself for the reasons why (there is always a why) and then fix the problem.
Coach Nack
