Two-tenths of a seconds doesn’t seem like an impactful amount of time, but to Washington senior sprinter Macy Marek it makes a world of difference.Marek is entering for fourth and final track season after finishing as a state qualifier in the 100 and 200 meter dashes a season ago.

Marek says heading into the season, she has worked very hard on her technique, including getting a fast start off the block. “Blocks are key for a lot of the sprits I am in, especially open events,” Marek said, “Since freshman year I have spent a lot of relays coming out of the block as a first leg.”

To help her get out of the blocks faster, Marek has been training in the off season in Iowa City to help her get an edge. “If you perfect the blocks, it can take point two seconds off your race (time) and for a sprint that is extremely important.”

Her offseason work paid off in the Demon Indoor Invitational last week at Cornell College. In the 60 meter dash, Marek crossed the finish line first with a time  of 8.23 seconds, two-tenths of a second better than second place sprinter Elyna Simon from Clayton Ridge.

Marek and the Washington girls’ track team returns to competition next Saturday at the Central Indoor Invitational in Pella.