On Mar. 8, the MSHS track team participated in a meet at CSU Pueblo, in which Mackinzy Wall (11) bested the school record for throwing discus. Additionally, on Saturday April 15, she threw 135.2, setting the record even higher. The previous record, set by Whitney Frase in 2008, was 122.9 feet, and Wall topped it by 12.3 feet most recently.
Wall has participated in track and discus since her freshman year. “I’ve always admired the track community,” Wall said, “and I’ve always wanted to be a part of it because I thought it’d be a fun environment, and it is.”
Maggie Santos is one of the track coaches at MSHS who has inspired Wall personally. “Coach Maggie inspires me, she’s been with me since day one,” she said.
Additionally, Wall feels that Melody Herl, another coach at MSHS, motivates her. “She’s always helping me with my form and she’s always here for me when I have a bad day.”
Anna Mack, a track coach at MSHS, also finds that Wall improved her skills with the help of Herl this year. “She worked with a private coach this past fall and winter to work specifically on technique and improve coming into her junior season,” Mack said. “She is regularly the last one on the field at practice, especially while working directly with Mel, to make improvements and learn more.”
Wall works on her form daily in preparation for track meets, as well as practicing three weightlifting programs.
Emma Wall (9), Mackinzy Wall’s younger sister, consistently catches her sister going the extra mile. “Every single day she works out in our home gym, works on her sprints, or works on her throws after practice,” she said. “She puts in extra effort every single day.”
Mackinzy Wall was surprised after finding that she had beat the school record. “It felt great to beat the record, I was really surprised considering it was my first meet,” she said.
Wall has a personal goal of throwing 130 feet, and then advancing to 135 feet. She also hopes to get top three in the state for Discus.
Wall has aspirations of going to college for track. “I’m hoping to go to a D1 school for track, and I have some colleges looking at me right now,” she said. “And in college, I’m hoping to throw over 150.”
Emma Wall is ecstatic that her sister has this opportunity. “I am really excited for her, and I’m glad that this is encouraging colleges to reach out to her,” she said.
Mackinzy Wall’s family is always supporting her at meets and encouraging her to push herself. “My dad will go and throw with her to encourage her, and he helps measure her throws,” Emma Wall said. “My family is very supportive and we’re always rooting for her. My mom will spend hours looking over stats and future colleges for her too.”
Emma Wall is excited to see her sister’s potential flourish. “I can’t wait to see what kinzy is going to do in the future,” Emma Wall said. “There are so many colleges reaching out for her, and she is continuously working. I am so excited for her.”
Mack feels that Mackinzy Wall has learned about dedication since her freshman year. “She not only works on her own skills, but I also see her mentoring her teammates and trying to help them improve as well,” Mack said. “She also has great sportsmanship at every meet and positively interacts with her competitors and officials. She continues to get better at the sport every day, but her real growth has been as a teammate and competitor.”
Emma Wall is inspired by her sister. “It’s inspiring to see her work so hard in sports and still get good grades,” Emma Wall said. “I recently got a letter, and I can’t wait to fill my letterman jacket up like hers.”
