NATCHEZ — Philicia Wimley may be sick this week, but she isn’t letting it stop her from getting ready.

Wimley, a senior for Natchez High School’s indoor track team, is fighting through a cold, determined to make sure she doesn’t miss prep time for the LSU High School Classic on Friday and Saturday.

The classic, an indoor track meet that features high school and club track teams from all over the country, will host cream-of-the-crop athletes. And Wimley admitted she’s a little nervous about the meet, even though she’s been every year since the ninth grade.

“It’s an intimidating meet to go to,” Wimley said. “Sometimes you have people that practice longer than us, but we still do well (each year).”

Wimley also said having a cold gives an extra hurdle for her to overcome — figuratively speaking.

“It’s hard to breathe, and running and not breathing don’t mix,” Wimley said.

But being the only female senior on the team, Wimley said she feels obligated to lead by example, even if she’s not 100 percent.

“I feel like people look up to me, so I try to pull through,” Wimley said. “Even if I’m sick, I make sure to practice and lead.”

NHS track coach Larry Wesley said he’s excited about Wimley’s potential this season, as well as the rest of his team. He also said it’s significant that Wimley is the only senior female.

“We have a young team this year,” Wesley said. “That’s a good thing, because they’ll have more experience (next year), so it’s less that I’ll have to worry about. More confidence comes with the more experience you have.”

Wesley also said starting off with indoor track is a great way to prepare for outdoor meets later in the season.

“There’s a big difference (between the two),” Wesley said. “Indoor track is more geared toward quick feet. There’s a little more hustle, and the breathing is different. It’s much easier to breathe outdoors.”

Specifically, Wesley said the indoor dashes are 55 to 60 meters, as opposed to the 100-meter dashes of outdoor meets. Also, the box for the long jump and triple jump is smaller, and the audience is much closer in an indoor meet.

“You can run right by the fans, because they’re in a smaller arena,” Wesley said.

NHS always makes a point to go to the LSU meet each year because of the quality of the competition at the meet, Wesley said, and the club track teams are the main reason why.

“They don’t all come from the same high school,” Wesley said. “They can go across the city to different schools and recruit kids. It’s good for us to measure ourselves against that type of talent and see what we can do.”

Wesley also said the exposure his athletes get at the LSU meet is a positive aspect of going each year.

“It’s all about modern-day technology,” Wesley said. “They can put the names on the computer for people to see, and they’ll see that we’re from Natchez.”

Amos James, a junior, will be competing for his second year at the LSU meet. He said he’s just trying to help lead his team to victory.

“I feel good about our team this year,” James said. “We have good discipline, and we have an even-minded team. No one’s thinking they’re a superstar, everyone’s even.”

With the club track teams and the cream-of-the-crop talent that comes with them, James said he’s eager to see how he measures up.

“I’ve just got to be prepared,” James said. “That’s all that goes through my mind when I compete against them.”