By Jeremy McDonald
Jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
TURNER, Ore.–Cascade’s Lili Pickett has progressively gotten better over her first three years of High School in the 400-meter race.
After putting up a PR time of 1:07.79 at the Oregon West Conference Tri-Conference meet with Woodburn and Newport on April 12, 2022 as a freshmen, Pickett had cut that time down to a PR time of 57.97 as a junior. That latter time was good enough to give Picknett, who is now a senior, the 4A State Title in the event this past spring.
It showed the senior the potential that she has and has motivated her to do more things in the event entering this year as Pickett closes into that 400-meter race school record that she has her sights on.
“I think it was just me seeing the potential in myself. I didn’t set my goals high enough my freshman, sophomore year and I think I just unlocked something with all of my coaches’ support and that really helped me see all of my potential,” starts Pickett about last year. “The game plan for this year is to stay steady and run my race like I have been in my junior year. Breaking 57 seconds into the 56 range would be amazing for me. That’s my top goal for this year, and just preparing for college is my main goal and also for State, too.
“I’ve put myself in the mental state of being positive, and whatever happened, it happened, and I will always be proud of myself. I wouldn’t look at it negatively, and it worked out for me.”
On Tuesday afternoon, Pickett signed her Letter of Intent to run Track and Field at Southern Oregon University in Ashland, Oregon. Raiders Head Coach Grier Gatlin, since returning to the program in 2011, has won Conference Coach of the Year seven times and the SOU program has produced nine men and four women individual NAIA All-Americans over that span. But it wasn’t just the track side of things that brought Pickett to Southern Oregon, but that personal feel that she got while talking to the coaches.
“I absolutely loved the campus and the people there. What set them apart for me was the coaching staff, just the staff in general, Joseph Dotson, the sprinting coach, was so kind to me and so helpful. He was always reaching out, and he wasn’t solely focused on Track. He also wanted to know me as a person, and I think that set them apart from everyone else,”
Pickett is looking to major in computer science or in business while at Southern Oregon University.
But in the meantime, it’s preparation for that next chapter of her athletic and academic career, all the while finishing up this current chapter at Cascade High School strongly. The Cougars open up the season, March 20, at Silverton High School at the Silverton Cloud Breaker.
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
