By Shirley Shuman
Laura Cain and Bethany Payne recently committed to run cross country and track and field at Glenville State University. The girls are members of the Braxton cross-country team which won the state championship the last two years and both compete in track and field.
The two girls began running during sixth grade but their circumstances were different. Cain explains that she began track in the sixth grade but her cross country career didn’t start until her freshman year. She mentioned her introduction into distance running. “I was first inspired to run long distance thanks to playing volleyball at Independence Middle school,” she said. “Before we were ever allowed to touch a volleyball at practice, we had to run a mile, and I got good at it quickly.” Cain “found cross country [her] freshman year and fell in love with the sport, what it stands for, the people who take part in it, and what it consists of and demands.”
Payne actually began running cross country in sixth grade and track and field in eighth. She explained what led her to running. “I began mainly because my older siblings had run in the past so I just decided to try it out, too.” She noted, “ I’ve stayed with cross country because of how rewarding the sport is and the amazing bonds I’ve made through running.”
During her freshman year, Cain was on the LKC-All Conference team and placed seventeenth at states. She was injured her sophomore year but, she explained, “I continued to run the best I could to keep helping the team at regionals and states.” She placed fifth in states her junior year, and Braxton won the state meet. As a senior, Cain placed second in the state meet after finishing second in the LKC meet. In that race she ran her P.R. of 19:47 even though she lost one of her shoes early in the race and finished without it.
This young woman, the daughter of Rebecca Cain and Richard Cain, said she chose to run for Coach Dan Meyers at GSU “to stay close to home to help take care of [her] mom.” At Glenville, she will major in Secondary Education to work towards a career as an English professor.
At BCHS, Cain also plays basketball and played volleyball. She is a member of HSTA, a member of the National Honor Society, and an AP Scholar.
Payne, the daughter of Eric and Lisa Payne, said she chose GSU “because of the small community feel, the plans Coach Myers shared with me for the team, and the closeness of the university to my home.” At Glenville she plans to study either nursing or dentistry.
Payne reached her P.R. at the Autumn Classic Invitational this past season. Her achievements in cross-country include Second-Team All-LKC her freshman year, First Team All-LKC her sophomore year, and Second-Team All-LKC her senior year. She also made Second Team All-State this past season with 12th place in the state meet.
This year, Payne serves as National Honor Society secretary, and the Class of 2025 secretary. She is also a completer in the personal fitness and wellness program and is in the senior class Braxton Blessing Bees Community Club.
Robert Lloyd, coach of both the cross country and track and field teams, commented on Cain and Payne as he knows them. “I have had the privilege of being around these girls the last five years as a coach. What they have done for this sport in our county doesn’t go unseen. They have been an intricate part in building the cross country and the track programs, especially these last two championship seasons in cross country,” he said. Continuing, Coach Lloyd noted, “I am super excited to see what they can do at the next level as a coach but more so as a life long friend who wants nothing but the best for their journey ahead.”
