Morley Stanwood runner gearing up for states
John Raffel
Sports Scene
A year after placing 17th in the state in Division 3 and earning all-state honors, Morley Stanwood sophomore Aiden McLaughlin is poised to finish among the top runners in the state before the season ends.
As a freshman, McLaughlin was fifth at regionals and then placed 17th in a season’s best of 16:39 at state for 17th.
He posted his personal record of 16:24.5 at the Montabella Invitational.. He has not taken a first but has several second places at various invitationals and jamborees. He led his team to second place in the Central State Activities Association Silver Division behind Kent City. “I’m getting excited for regionals,” he said. “I’m hoping to get under 16:20. I have a couple of meets left. By state, I want to PR again. I think I just about to go out faster and try to keep my pace.”
He was second overall in the conference. It’s been his best season.
“Endurance for sure (is better),” McLaughlin said. “My whole race has gotten better. I’ve been able to be at top speed longer. Last year, my first mile, I’d be pretty fast, then I would go downhill.”
But McLaughlin has become a strong runner this year.
“Our team did a lot better, they did very well this year,” he said. “We had a lot of kids step up. We lost some key seniors last year. They had to step up and improve their times to help our team take second in the conference.”