The third time was a charm for Wright City junior Lexii LeCrone who finished fifth in the high jump at this year’s Class 2A state track meet.
“We were the first ones to jump at state and it was cold. We started at 4-8 which I cleared easily. But then there was a long delay while they messed with the bar, and I got cold and nervous. When I finally got to jump at 5 feet, I missed on my first two tries but then cleared it easily on the third try,” said Lexii. “I barely missed at 5-2 which was disappointing because I had done that earlier in the year. Because I missed those first two tries at five feet, I finished fifth instead of third. But overall, it was a good experience. I was in shock up on the podium for the first time and having all those people looking at me.”
Lecrone qualified for state her freshman and sophomore seasons but suffered a big disappointment last year when she missed on her opening jump at 4-6 which motivated her during the off season.
The road to success has been one of difficulties for Lexii starting with fact that Wright City doesn’t have a high jump pit for practice.
“That meant I had to go to other schools like Idabel or Broken Bow to practice, but those coaches were pretty gracious about letting me do it.”
And Lecrone did have a couple of pluses working in her favor.
“I’ve been in competitive dance since I was three and so I’ve grown to be the limber type which I think has helped me a lot in high jump in being able to flex by back more easily to get over the bar. I’ve also got a dad who was in track in high school and has been my unofficial coach who works with a lot on my technique.”
Lexii’s official coach Johnny Crabtree has been one of her biggest supporters.
“She’s been awesome in the high jump since she was a freshman. She’s got good character, a hard work ethic and is good in the classroom as well.”
With her high finish this year, there’s no stopping Lexii Lecrone as she looks to her senior year.
“Now that I’ve done that, they’ll be no off-season while I work to win it all next year.”
