Wilson’s record-setting Katie Dallas now chases herself on the track
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By Jason Guarente — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent
Records are usually the last hurrah. The final achievement before the curtain falls on one’s high school career.
That’s how Derek Gaul did it in the long jump. Or Joe Jardine in the pole vault. Or Ashlyn Giles in the shot put and discus. Those memorable marks were made as seniors when they were taking their final trip through the schedule.
What if the record comes sooner? With an entire season still remaining? Katie Dallas is one of the few recent Berks track and field athletes who has faced that question. For Wilson’s senior to set a personal best, she has to make history.
“Coming back that’s always the goal,” Dallas said. “Break the record and PR. Sometimes it gets in my head a little bit. It’s a little difficult knowing you have a target on your back. There are a lot of expectations.”
The final race of Dallas’ junior season set the standard in the 800 at 2:12.85. She won silver in PIAA Class 3A and placed herself among the county’s all-time greats.
The temptation is to want to eclipse that mark immediately. The reality is it often takes longer.
Dallas has methodically lowered her times. Her season best is 2:14.51. That’s among the greatest two-lap sprints ever in Berks. But when you already own the record it seems like no big deal.
Dallas has to remain patient. That’s not always easy.
“We’re getting there faster than we were last year,” she said. “That’s helpful for me to hear and it keeps me going.”
The next two weeks are when Dallas figures to post her top times. Her workload is lighter and the competition is tougher.
Wilson’s standout broke Sarah Crissman’s record in districts and lowered it at states last May.
When Dallas won gold at the Firing Meet last weekend, the race was over in the opening 100 meters. She sprinted to a huge lead and no one had a prayer of catching her. That aggressive style has become a trademark.
“I don’t like to mess with getting boxed in with a lot of people,” Dallas said. “I just like to go out.”
Dallas used that approach at the PIAA meet when she ran the first lap in 62 seconds and the second lap in 70. She was nipped at the finish by Kate Edenson of Central Bucks West by half-a-second.
“She’s emptying the tank,” Wilson coach Doug Dahms said. “That’s what you’ve got to do. I love it because she knows she has to run a hard first lap. You just have to hope you have the conditioning to hang on for that second lap.”
Dallas and Twin Valley’s Sarah Miller were supposed to have an epic matchup at Firing. Miller was forced to scratch at the last minute. That left Dallas without a challenger. She coasted to the line in 2:16.84. Those two are seeded 1 and 3 at districts with Cumberland Valley’s Ashley Pines in between.
Berks County’s girls records on the track are mostly ancient history. Only Reagan Underwood, who set the 3200 standard in 2019, and Symone Foster, who broke the 100 hurdles record in 2018, have set their marks in the past 15 years. Four of the eight individual track records date back to the 1990s.
Underwood also set her record as a junior but lost her senior season to COVID. Dallas has the chance to keep going.
“She’s ahead of where she was last year at this time when she made some nice drops at districts and states,” Dahms said. “Hopefully she can come back and do the same thing. We’ll see.”
What happens when a record-setter has another year? Dallas is about to learn the answer. Maybe she’ll raise the bar even higher.
District 3 Track and Field Performance List
