Before the track season started, Aubriante Cleckley set the goal for herself to make it the state championships. It was a lofty goal, and Cleckley, a Riverside freshman, recognized that.
No matter, Cleckley made good on her expectations, as she finished sixth in the 100-meter dash in the PIAA Class 2A championships with a time of 12.60 seconds in Shippensburg last weekend. For her efforts, Cleckley is the Times’ Girls Athlete of the Week.
“My main goal was to make it to states like I did, but I didn’t think I’d actually do it,” Cleckley said. “It’s more than what I could’ve imagined. Especially as a freshman not getting too much training the first two weeks of track practice, it’s crazy that I came out and did it.”
Though Cleckley thrived throughout the season, it never truly dawned on her that she could make it to states until she actually did, when she qualified by finishing second in the WPIAL championships.
When the moment finally came, after she ran a school-record time of 12.38 in the preliminary heat, Cleckley was a bit overwhelmed. Still, she pushed through and earned a medal.
“It was pretty nerve wracking, especially once they started saying, ‘set,’” Cleckley said. “And I was like, ‘Oh no, I don’t know how this is going to end. I don’t know if I’m going to do good or bad.’ But I finished and did well.”
Cleckley said she knows she can do better, so she wasn’t totally pleased with her time. Still, she recognizes just what she achieved and how far she came from the beginning of the season till the end. The key was rather simple, as Cleckley put in the necessary time and work to get better.
“I practiced a lot and put in all my effort and just tried to do my best,” Cleckley said. “I really got better at getting off the blocks real good because that was my main issue at the beginning of the season.”
Having established herself as one of the top runners in the 100-meter dash in her section and the WPIAL in general, the state championships served as a bit of a humbling experience for Cleckley. But now that she saw the best the state has to offer, she’s dead set on getting back and getting better.
“I’m probably going to never stop running track. Seeing what I can do as a freshman, once I get to my senior year I should be doing better,” Cleckley said.