NATCHEZ &045; Going to the MHSAA State Track meet can be &uot;a little intimidating,&uot; Cathedral middle-distance runner Claire Kenda said.

But for Kenda and fellow Cathedral track standout Taylor Brantley, going to the state meet Saturday in Pearl won’t be an unfamiliar feeling. Both runners were at the state meet a year ago, Kenda also accompanied by her brother John Paul, who has since graduated.

In that meet, Claire Kenda was running the 3,200, but she’s moved down to the mile this year, largely due to a lack of practice time. Between basketball and cheerleading, there just hasn’t been as much time for the long training runs required for a two-mile event.

&uot;It’s a big difference. In the 3,200, you really have to pace yourself and make sure you have something left,&uot; Kenda said. &uot;In the mile, it’s not like you run flat out, but it’s a totally different speed. That last 400 is a dead sprint.&uot;

Moving to a new event has been an adjustment for Kenda, but one that’s one gone well. The biggest surprise was learning just what she could do at a shorter distance.

&uot;She didn’t think she had a sprint, but she’s got one,&uot; Cathedral track coach Randy Brumfield said.

Kenda has improved her times from around seven minutes down to a best of 6:28 at South State, but Brumfield thinks she could set another personal best at state Saturday and hopes to have her running the race in less than six minutes next year.

Brantley’s also a veteran of the state meet, so he has some idea what to expect.

&uot;It’s a lot harder competition,&uot; Brantley said. &uot;You see people you haven’t run against before and you don’t know what to expect from them.&uot;

As for Brantley, Brumfield says the sophomore doesn’t lack for confidence.

&uot;He was walking around the other day and I asked him, ‘You been doing your workouts?’&uot; Brumfield said. &uot;He just looked at me and said, ‘Can’t you tell?’&uot;

Brantley’s physique notwithstanding, his times have been steadily improving. He ran a 2:21 earlier this season, then improved that mark by nearly four seconds in his second-place finish at South State.

&uot;I think he could get under two minutes next year,&uot; Brumfield said.

Brantley’s event, the 800, is a race that’s something of a cross between a sprint and a middle-distance run.

&uot;It’s a real quick-paced race,&uot; Brantley said. &uot;You have to push it out hard and then give whatever you’ve got left on the last lap.&uot;

Brumfield said Brantley excels at closing out the race.

&uot;He’s not a frontrunner, he’s a kick runner,&uot; Brumfield said. &uot;In that last 110 yards, no one will pass him. He just has to make sure he stays close to the lead runner. At South State, the guy who beat him had probably 50 yards, but Taylor almost caught him at the end. He needs to keep that gap at 15 yards or so.&uot;

Brantley’s training regimen reflects the race he runs &045; just as the 800 is a mix of sprint and distance, so is the way he practices.

&uot;We run a lot of 400s, then do some middle distance runs, some long distance, some more middle distance,&uot; Brantley said. &uot;You have to do a little bit of everything for the 800 because it’s right in between.&uot;

Each day’s practice is organized around a theme &045; sprints, middle distance or long distance &045; and the training rotates throughout the week.

The duo usually practices at Cathedral, since a track isn’t necessary for most of their training regimen, though Brumfield said Natchez track coach Larry Wesley has been very helpful in letting them use the track at Natchez High.

&uot;When you’re doing distance, you don’t need the track,&uot; Brumfield said. &uot;It can hurt the shins to run on that hard track too much, so we don’t always work out there, though we do spend a fair amount of time over at Natchez High with coach (Larry) Wesley.&uot;