After battling through a series of injuries over the last three years of her running career, senior Madeline Grattan medaled and set a personal record at the Baldwin Invitational last Friday. 

Among those injuries were a broken arm her junior year and a foot stress fracture her senior year. But she fought through the struggles to run during her senior track season. 

Her teammates saw her determination.

“When she got a stress fracture, she never lost hope and always stayed positive about it,” sophomore Alexa O’Malley said.

Last week, Grattan was part of the girls 4×400 relay team that placed at the Baldwin Invitational. She was able to achieve her goal of getting a PR before she graduated. 

“I was really excited to PR after coming back, especially since it was a home meet,” Grattan said.

This is Grattan’s fourth year competing for Baldwin track. She runs in the 400 meters and 800 meters solo, and also competes in the girls 4×400 relay. 

“I like them because they are not too long, not too short. They are also pretty fun to run,” Grattan said. 

Grattan runs throughout the school year, moving from cross country in the fall through indoor track in the winter and track in the spring.

Track has taught her many things, discipline being one of them. 

“My mom introduced me to track, and I quickly realized how disciplined you have to be,” Grattan said. 

Her high school coaches taught her how to be disciplined. She said former coach Dennis Logan’s coaching will always stick with her, even though he is not her coach anymore. 

“Coach Logan helped me a lot, whether it was a workout or getting ready for a race,” Grattan said. 

O’Malley and Grattan run the 400 meter relay together. Grattan is always a team player, O’Malley said. She always looks out for everyone and is always ready for whatever the coaches throw at her. 

“She always shows up for her fellow teammates, no matter how stressed she is before a meet,” O’Malley said. 

Sophomore Alana Ipolito also runs with Grattan. They run mid-distance for indoor track and outdoor together and also compete in cross country, and they go on all of their runs together.

Ipolito admires her determination and resilience, which she thinks are qualities all strong runners should have.  

“Grattan is a very dedicated runner. She has come back to the sport after hip surgery and multiple injuries,” Ipolito said. 

Running with both O’Malley and Ipolito has been one of Grattan’s favorite track memories.

“I will definitely miss being with my friends every day after school and being able to compete alongside them,” Grattan said.