Last summer Riverdale Baptist’s Krystin Lawson established herself as the nation’s best sprinter at her age. But that wasn’t enough.
When Lawson entered the outdoor season, her goal was to be the best in the area, regardless of age. To achieve that, the sophomore had to topple Largo’s Michaylin Golladay.
Her chance came in the Freddie Hendricks Festival in Baltimore and Lawson didn’t waste it. Running an 11.87 in the 100 meters, Lawson not only eclipsed Golladay (12.44), she was the only girl in the elite field to crack 12.00.
“I worked on my block start all week and it paid off,” said Lawson. “[Golladay] always beat me. Everybody always compared me to her. She has that muscle mass that I don’t have and everybody said, ‘You have to get that if you’re going to beat her.’”
Lawson is quite comfortable with her compact frame. She’s 5-foot-4 and 115 pounds. Last weekend at the XBC Charger Classic at Chantilly (Va.), Lawson won the 100 (12.17) and 200 (25.97) by comfortable margins and was named the meet’s Most Valuable Female Runner. The previous weekend, she set a meet record (11.94) in winning the 100 at the Jaguar Invitational.
Lawson took up running in the seventh grade, inspired in part by her father, Riverdale coach Reggie Lawson. Four years later, Lawson is among the best in the nation. Last summer at the Junior Olympics, she was the only 15 year old who made the finals in the 15-16 competition. This summer, she figures she’s heir to the throne.
“I like the competition,” said Lawson. “By pushing myself, I learn a lot about myself. Once you’re on thetrack, it’s just you. It says a lot about you. Are you a quitter or are you a fighter?”
