Orr does it all
Cassie Orr is shown competing in the javelin at Wednesday’s Niagara Catholic Athletic Association track and field meet at the Niagara Olympic Club.
Cassie Orr is the definition of versatility.
The Grade 9 student at Notre Dame in Welland competes in javelin, shot put and high jump at the high school level and the member of the Thorold Elite Track Club excels in all three events.
At the upcoming NXT CHAMP Invitational June 18 and 19 in Toronto, an invitation-only meet that brings the top 16 athletes in the province together to compete, Orr will be taking part in five events.
“She is a very talented, versatile, multi-sport student athlete with lots of talent and lots of participation,” Thorold Elite coach Steven Fife said.
At Wednesday’s Niagara Catholic Athletic Association track and field meet at the Niagara Olympic Club, Orr recorded a personal best in javelin to win the novice girls division. She also won shot put and placed second in high jump.
Fyfe feels it is Orr’s versatility that makes her special.
“She has speed, a great throwing arm, grit and determination,” he said. “All of those things together make her great in any combination of events.”
The 14-year-old started competing in track and field in Grade 4.
“I just loved it and I wanted to do more so I started at Thorold Elite,” she said. “Ever since then, I started doing javelin, shot put, long jump, high jump, hurdles and a bunch of track events.
“I like how there is a variety of things. If you are not the best at running, you can still do javelin or shot put.”
She is most proud of how she has performed in field events at meets competing up against under-16 athletes.
Her favourite event is hurdles but she is not doing that at the high school level. At high school meets, her favourite event is the javelin.
The member of the Niagara Rapids under-15 travel volleyball team that finished 11th in the province trains two or three times a week for track and field during volleyball season and almost every day in the summer.
“It is kind of hard but you just measure out your time,” she said. “I usually train two days, have a break day and then do two more days of hard training.”
Of course, there is also school work to factor into the equation.
“There is a lot more work this year compared to elementary because I just started high school this year, but I am getting through it,” Orr said.
She finds that her volleyball training is paying dividends in track and field.
“It helps with endurance. For example in javelin, it helps with your short distance running.”
Orr has no long-term goals for track and field and is content to see where her journey takes her.
“This spring, I want to get better at everything and see where I want to go and for what.”
Her goals are more process oriented but saying that, she would love to qualify for the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations championships. Next up for Orr and the other OFSAA hopefuls are the Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association championships next Wednesday and Thursday at Welland Centennial.
