Catching Up with Lanie Whittaker
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 | Track and Field
Sophomore Florida sprinter Lanie Whittaker (Miami, Fla.) returns for her second year with the Gators after earning Southeastern Conference Female Indoor Freshman of the Year honors a year ago. Whittaker is one of Florida's top returnees on the women's sprint corps and, recently, GatorZone.com checked in with Whittaker for the latest update.
GZ.com: After being named the SEC's Female Indoor Freshman of the Year, how has the transition gone from your freshman to your sophomore season?
Lanie Whittaker: “So far, I am thankful to have a teammate [in the 400m] in Ebony Eutsey, who is from Miami also, because last year I kind of worked by myself training-wise, so now I have her to push me. Since I was SEC Freshman of the Year last year, I use that as motivation to run faster this year and to help Ebony so she can become Freshman of the Year also.”
GZ.com: Talk about the sprints group for the women. It's a young group, but there's a lot of talent there. How has everyone been progressing so far?
Lanie Whittaker: “Every day in practice, we all get better and faster. As we motivate and push each other, we run faster. As for the other freshman Darshay [Davis], she's on the quiet site and very low-key, but if we keep pushing her, she could also be one of the best sprinters in the future.”
GZ.com: This weekend, the team is at Virginia Tech. What are you looking forward to about this weekend?
Lanie Whittaker: “Last year, I won the 400 at Virginia Tech, so hopefully I get to win it again this year.”
GZ.com: What are your goals this season both individually and as a team?
Lanie Whittaker: “As a team, we would like to win the SEC both indoors and outdoors, because last year we only won indoors. Individually, I would like to drop by time to 52 low or even possibly 51 high. Hopefully our team all gets to go to nationals this year and race, because last year we only had a selected few.”
GZ.com: What would you say to people who look at this as a young team that lost a lot of talented seniors?
Lanie Whittaker: “Time will tell. We are a young team, so as time goes on, we will get better. People may be doubting us now, but we will be stronger as time goes on. It's a young team now, so later on down the line, we will be older and faster, and competing on the same level.”
GZ.com: What have you enjoyed most about being at the University of Florida?
Lanie Whittaker: “My friends. When I first came, I was really quiet and didn't hardly speak to anybody. I was really homesick, but now the bond that I have with my teammates, both male and female, and my friends outside the team is really tight. With them, I'm happy here.”
