Canal returns to form
Sophomore track runner wins 1,600-meter race in her first race since an injury.
March 2, 2023
Emma Canal was a star cross-country runner in the fall.
The sophomore at Hoover High School is proving to be a standout in track, too.
Canal finished in first place in the girls’ 1,600-meter race on Wednesday in a tri-meet against Arcadia and Muir at Arcadia High School.
Canal finished with a time of 5 minutes 49 seconds, which was impressive considering that Wednesday’s race was her first competition after she came back from injuring her achilles.
¨I think I’m in a good position especially in our league, but I know that Arcadia is really good and i know that there are some other girls out there that weren’t racing that race that I think we will see in the future,” said Canal, who took 16th place in the CIF Southern Section Division III finals in the fall said. “I’m hoping to get under 5:30 and maybe make CIF this year for track again.”
Katherine Coppersmith of Hoover ran the girls’ 200-meter dash. She finished in first place with a time of 28.76 seconds. Hoover’s Jayda Russ-Wheeler took second in the race in 29.12 seconds.
Even though Coppersmith felt that she was unprepared she beat the third-place finisher by more than a second.
“Coming into this season, especially the last two meets, I felt really unprepared so I’m surprised how well I placed in all my events,” Coppersmith said. “But it is what it is and I just hope for improvement in the upcoming meets.
“As for goals, my goal is to make CIF, break a minute in the 400m and just overall to beat my PR’s from last year in all my events.”
Coppersmith also placed second in the girls’ long jump with a length of 14.05 feet. She was also second in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:06.03.
Russ-Wheeler competed in the girls’ 100-meter dash. Russ-Wheeler finished in second place with a time of 14.19 seconds. She beat her time in the last tri-meet by .9 seconds.
