Penn Hills’ Cam Thomas works to ‘develop top-end speed’ during indoor track season

By: Josh Rizzo
Sunday, January 22, 2023 | 11:01 AM

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Cam Thomas was pleased that though imperfect, his start to the indoor track season showed tangible progress from the year before.

The Penn Hills junior finished the 60-meter dash in 7.27 seconds to place third at the first TSTCA indoor meet at Edinboro University. Thomas’ time improved on his best from the year before.

But he did have a minor mishap.

“I felt good that I did well in the event I ran,” Thomas said. “I tweaked both of my hamstrings during the race. I did see my time drop from last year.”

The Indians had a number of strong performances on the track. Sophomore Mackenzie McIntyre finished first in the 60-meter with a time of 8.16.

“She spent the fall coming to preseason workouts,” Penn Hills Lee Zelkowitz said. “She has natural talent and her form is impeccable. We have high expectations for her.”

Penn Hills’ 4×100 relay team — consisting of Larissa Lockridge, Mylah Faulk, Jaydn Golden and Maliah Powell — also finished first with a time of 3:20.22.

“That’s not a perfect time, but it’s a nice performance for this time of year,” Zelkowitz said. “Edinboro is a weird track with it being 238 meters, so it can be confusing.”

Faulk placed fifth in the 400 dash for Penn Hills, while Achan Green finished sixth in the 60 hurdles.

Thomas is one of many Penn Hills athletes who try to utilize the indoor track season to build for other sports and the outdoor track season.

In Thomas’ case, he has been running while trying to map out his future. Last weekend, Thomas, who is a defensive back/athlete, went on a college visit to possibly play football at Marshall University. Thomas has also spoken to Central Michigan, Cornell and has an offer from Akron.

“It’s exciting for me to get my name out there,” Thomas said.

Cam’s older brother, Corey Thomas Jr., played at linebacker for the Zips last season.

When it comes to track, Thomas started with the outdoor season as a freshman. He added the indoor portion as a sophomore.

“Track helps develop top-end speed,” Thomas said. “The 40-yard dash means everything in the football world and track makes me faster.”

Zelkowitz said he expects Thomas to have a strong season.

“He works really hard,” Zelkowitz said. “He’s been working out with the coaches since football started. He’s been able to utilize track to improve his football skills. I’m proud of the time he ran.”

Thomas said he is hoping to continue to drop time throughout the season.

He has seen a lot of progress since picking up the sport about two years ago.

“At first, when I started, it was hard because everyone was faster than me,” Thomas said. “When I was good in the 100 and the 4×400 relay is what helped me get excited to compete.”

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