Wahama’s Connor Lambert compete in a cross country race during the fall. (Photo by Craig Allison Photography)

To say Connor Lambert had a senior year to remember would be an understatement.

After leading the White Falcons to their first football state championship since 2012 as one of the state’s top running backs, Lambert won the 100-meter and 200-meter dash titles at the WVSSAC Class A State Track and Field Meet.

Those two victories propelled the Wahama High School boys track team to a Class A runner-up finish, the best in program history.

Now, the West Virginia Sports Writers Association (WVSWA) has named Lambert the 2025 McCoy Male Track Athlete of the Year.

The McCoy Award is given annually to the state’s top male and female track performers.

Ty Steorts of Hurricane finished second in the voting, followed by Amos Kimble of Tyler Consolidated in third.

Lambert said it is an enormous honor to receive the award.

“West Virginia has lots of talented track athletes across all events, so to be voted to win this award is such a privilege,” he said.

Remarkably, this was Lambert’s first year running high school track.

“People and coaches have been begging me to run track since my freshman year,” he said. “Since I didn’t have football to prepare for in the spring, I knew I’d have a few teammates with me and since it was my senior season, I decided to finally join the track team.”

Wahama head coach Angie Johnson knew Lambert’s speed would benefit the White Falcons, but even she was surprised by his raw pace.

“He blew away the competition in all classes by more than any track athlete I had seen in my 15 years of being around West Virginia high school track,” she said. “Nobody was even close to him when he crossed the finish line in both his 100 and 200 and those races are usually down to photo finishes.”

Johnson noted the senior demonstrated an immense work ethic, even when an injury briefly sidelined him.

“He pushes and pushes to be the best that he can and that means a lot of times long and grueling workouts unless you force him to stop,” she said. “Even when he was injured, he still showed up at practices doing what stretches and exercises he could, until he could work back up to where he could come back at full strength. He never missed a single practice during all this.”

Heading into the day of the finals, Lambert admitted the nerves were present following his performance in the preliminaries.

“I had a few events the day before, so I was a little sore. I hoped that wouldn’t be a big factor, and thankfully it turned out not to be,” he said. “I also knew there would be hungry competition in those other seven lanes.”

A primary source of that competition was Doddridge County’s Tommy Walters-Hickman, who finished second behind Lambert in both the 100 and 200 by margins of less than half a second.

“I had to race against him a handful of times during the regular season,” he said. “I knew since I had a fast and explosive start he’d be chasing since he is a bit taller and has longer legs and strides. I had to have a great start to have a chance at beating him.”

The White Falcon standout secured the starts he needed.

Lambert won the 200-meter dash in 21.84 seconds and the 100-meter dash in 10.61 seconds.

His 100-meter time was the fastest across all three classes, making him the fastest person in the state and breaking the Class A State Meet record.

“When I first crossed that finish line, by biggest concern was if I broke my own personal record,” Lambert said. “It took a second for it to hit me that I broke the state meet record.”

Johnson said Lambert’s performance proves athletes can achieve anything they set their minds to, even without elite facilities.

“Wahama does not have its own track, so we often run in our school’s parking lot or travel to another team’s track and share it with them while they practice,” she said. “Connor has shown that with dedication and true grit, you can do anything you set your mind to no matter the circumstances. This state record is a first for Wahama and something that will be talked about for years to come.”

Lambert credited his coaches and teammates for his rapid development.

“Considering I had a lot to learn about track in the span of about a month, I needed a lot of help,” he said. “From Coach (David) Tennant teaching me block starts, Alan Barnitz teaching me handoffs for the relays, Coach Jacob (Lloyd) for helping me get the relay timings right and head coach Angie Johnson for getting me in shape. I’m really thankful to them for that.”

The experience also impacted Johnson’s perspective on her own role.

“I sometimes wondered if I am doing enough for my athletes, and if I was leading them in the right direction, and through athletes like Connor, I learned that I am doing enough,” she said. “I learned that their achievements are often times my achievements as well. They teach me the true meaning of winning, even of it is not first place.”

After graduating from Wahama, Lambert transitioned to the University of Charleston, where he joined the Golden Eagles football team.

“It went better than expected. Around week three I got called up to play special teams, so I wanted to make the best of it,” he said. “Going from Class A to college and thriving is definitely possible, and I hope to prove that soon.”

Lambert hopes his story inspires others to try the sport.

“I hope they just decide to give track a chance,” he said. “You never know what events you can excel at. You never know unless you give it a try.”