'That's my goal': Hayden's Finn Dunshee looks to break Jordy Nelson's record at state

TOPEKA — Finn Dunshee received a letter a few weeks ago during his senior year retreat at Hayden.

“By senior year, you better be a state champion in track.”

Dunshee penned this very letter to himself during his freshman year. He wrote it during a theology class and it was stashed away to be opened during the final retreat of his time at the high school.

Luckily, Dunshee has already accomplished the goal he set for himself years ago. He won the Class 4A state title in the 100-meter dash last season.

This weekend, he wants more. A lot more.

State baseball tournament: A look at every first round state tournament baseball game for the Topeka area

Dunshee will be competing in the 100- and 200-meter dashes in the Class 3A State Championship on Friday and Saturday in Wichita. He will also be on the 4x100 and 4x400 teams.

Dunshee is in stellar form as he broke Hayden’s 30-year-old record in the 200 with a 21.64 in last week’s regional championship. He also broke his school record with a 10.69 in the 100. He wasn’t done as he helped his teammates then break the 4x100-relay school record. Dunshee also is a part of the school record 4x400 team, which set the new mark last season.

It's safe to say Dunshee is one of the best sprinters in Hayden history.

“Yeah, it feels pretty good. I like being able to say it. It feels cool to say it,” Dunshee laughed. “I don’t actually say it, my mom would get mad at me.”

Dunshee credited his success to his teammates and his coaches. He has earned a personal best in almost every race this season and it’s because of his dedication outside of practice. Multiple times each week, Dunshee and his teammates go to Washburn Rural to practice on their track and use their blocks. This extra bit of work is paying off in dividends.

State softball tournament: Here's the breakdown for every Topeka-area team

The senior’s form is smooth and his block work is efficient, but it was all a process, especially this season. During football, he tore his MCL and was sidelined for the majority of the regular season before returning for the final two games of the playoffs. He feared the injury would not only hurt the football team but his track career as well.

He overcame a leg injury, but he was sent another curveball. Dunshee was hit hard with the flu in the opening weeks of the track season. He lost his strength and fitness, which forced him to work even harder to regain it all.

“My times were not great, I could barely breathe. I was out there coughing the entire time,” Dunshee said. “It really threw off the beginning of my season and I lost like 10 pounds. Ever since I have recovered from that, I have PRed in every single meet.”

Dunshee hopes to continue to secure a personal record this weekend. He holds the fastest time in Class 3A in the 100 and 200 dashes.

Vote: Who is the Topeka area's high school athlete of the week for May 13-18?

His 10.69 is only a shade off of the Class 3A state championship record held by former Riley County and NFL star Jordy Nelson. His record time of 10.63 was secured in 2003. The former Kansas State wide receiver also holds the 200-meter dash record with a 21.64, which Dunshee hit in last week’s regional.

“I am hoping to, that is my goal. I am super close and if I PR again, I can do it,” Dunshee said. “The issue with track is that it is so condition-dependent. If I don’t have the conditions, it is going to be so hard to pull it out.”

Dunshee will run his 200 preliminary on Friday at 5:35 p.m. with finals occurring on Saturday at 6:15 p.m. His 100-preliminary race is Saturday at 9 a.m. with the finals coming later that day at 1:05 p.m.

The best sprinter in Hayden history isn’t planning on running in college. He is set to study biology at the University of Dallas, but he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of competing at the college level. He's looking forward to a grand finale to high school this weekend.

“When I have all of these great teammates with me, a great coach, there has been a great improvement,” Dunshee said. “When you have teammates that all want to succeed as much as you do, it makes it a lot easier."

Liam Keating covers high school sports for The Topeka Capital-Journal. Send stats or information to him at Lkeating@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: How Hayden's Finn Dunshee predicted his track success through a letter