Stone continues growth in college
Springfield graduate pushing himself in offseason
FORT WASHINGTON » One of the first things Chris Stone learned about track and field at the college level is that there’s always someone better out there.
Stone, a 2014 graduate of Springfield Township High School, is coming off his best collegiate season at Auburn but knows there’s still a lot of work left to do. A decathlete at Auburn, Stone was at Germantown Academy on Tuesday night as part of GA’s summer All-Comers Track Meet series to work on some of his running events.
Coming back home is important to Stone, who won his heat in the 400m run on Tuesday.
“I like to come out here and have fun, I’ve been coming back since high school,” Stone said. “This summer, I’m really trying to get run work in. I did some throws last week, getting the 400 in today helps me get more races under my belt.”
Stone competed as a freshman during indoor track but redshirted that outdoor season, so he heads into the fall with one indoor campaign and two outdoor seasons worth of eligibility left. Competing in the stacked SEC has given the Oreland resident a better appreciation for what it takes to be challenged at every turn and find ways to overcome it.
He finished sixth in the decathlon at the SEC outdoor meet this spring, topping the field in pole vault and high jump en route to a score of 7,062. A standout pole vaulter and high jumper at Springfield Twp, Stone learned quickly that the college level was much different than high school.
“You learn to understand at every level you go to, there are people better than you,” Stone said. “When you come out of high school, you think you’re the best in something and as soon as you get to college, there’s so many people better than you.”