Frye represents Sweetwater at Class A Championships, places seventh in 1600m

Four months ago, Sweetwater’s McCade Frye was just a new face around a track. Now he is a state-level competitor.

The Sweetwater sophomore placed seventh in the 1600m run at the TSSAA Class A State Championship on May 21 in Murfreesboro.

“It was amazing. I know that he works really hard on his running and he runs a lot. To see him get to run yesterday was great,” Sweetwater coach Darla Cooper said. “His perseverance, his drive to do well, his willingness to not give up when things get hard.”

Frye finished with a 4:48.37 in the race, battling the heat and the level of competition at the top tier of prep track events.

“I was managing it okay. It definitely affected my time and I think I could have run it way faster. Everyone was running the same conditions,” Frye said.

Normally a cross-country runner, Frye wanted to come out for the sport this spring, opting it over his traditional soccer option.

“I feel like I am good at running, so I thought it was something I would want to try. I am better at cross country than track; I like longer distances but I like trying something new,” Frye said.

Frye ran in the 800m and 1600m during the season. Adding track events alters his already rigorous training schedule.

“During the season, I usually do two hard track workouts and easy mileage every other day and a long run on the weekend,” Frye added. “I usually try to run 10 to 11 miles on the weekend. I try to do 40 miles a week, but it is harder during track season.”

Cooper was joined by Sweetwater cross country coach Emily Roy at the meet.

“I am really grateful that I have all the people that encourage me to do all the stuff. We talked about what the strategy was for the race and they were wishing me good luck,” Frye said.

Frye was also joined by his parents.

“It is great to have a student like McCade to represent the school and the county. He is a well-rounded student, he is very polite and engaging. He is very friendly, kind and what a student-athlete should be,” Cooper said. “Hard-working, driven and dedicated to the sport.”

Liberty Creek’s Jaden Hillis won the event with a 4:36.20.

Frye started strong with a 1:09.37 split and finished the final 400m with a 1:10.41. His middle splits saw times of 1:13.64 and 1:14.95.

“I am really proud of it, I just wish that I could have placed better,” Frye added.

Adapting to running shorter distances brings the challenge of finding the right bursts, when to kick and how to handle the changes. It takes time.

But Frye plans on coming back next spring.