Correspondent File Photo / Robert Hayes Salem High School senior Riley Hutton drives and shoots for a layup during last season’s game against Cardinal Mooney. Hutton, who plays football, basketball and runs track for the Quakers, returned from injury last season.
Riley Hatton had never been plagued by injuries prior to her junior track and field season at Salem High School. The three-sport athlete for the Quakers managed to avoid any setbacks until she suffered a hamstring injury at the 2023 Columbiana County Track and Field Meet.
“I was going for county MVP because I’d never won it before and I had a chance, so I was really excited.” Hutton said. “Then in my first race, the 100m, it was really cold outside and I hurt my hamstring, so I had to withdraw that day and it kind of hindered my whole season.”
The injury was difficult to heal, and after missing until regionals, Hatton re-aggravated it on a jump that, in hindsight, she should not have jumped.
“That was actually my last jump. I was second in the long jump at regionals and I knew I was going to state, but I wanted to aim for first place.” Hutton said. “I didn’t have to jump the last jump but I decided to go for it and then I hurt my hamstring again. So I had to withdraw from the 400m and the 4×4… which was devastating as I had a chance to compete in both.”
Hatton tried to make up for an injury-riddled junior season by undergoing physical therapy before the state meet in Columbus, but gave up after her first two jumps and finished 16th out of 18 competitors.
The setback and disappointment led to a summer of physical therapy and stress for Hatton.
“That was my senior year.” She said: “Sports is everything to me.”
Luckily, she breezily made it through both soccer and basketball seasons, scoring over 100 career goals in soccer and over 1,000 career points in basketball, establishing herself as one of Salem’s best all-around athletes.
But her senior track season brought the same pain as her junior season.
“Football season was great. It ended exactly the way I wanted it to. Same with basketball. Basketball season was great. It didn’t bother me at all.” Hutton said. “Then athletics started again. In my first practice back at athletics, I hurt my hamstring during a 10-metre fly drill. I hurt it again, and it was a shock.”
Determined to end his high school athletic career on his own terms, Hatton decided to attend physical therapy every morning before school and drive about an hour twice a week to receive cold laser light therapy.
“I hadn’t played all season, so I honestly didn’t have any expectations.” Hutton said. “I had no idea what to expect.”
Hatton attempted to return at the County Championships, the same event she injured her hamstring in a year earlier, and her return was in full effect at the Regionals, despite Hatton and her coaching staff being unsure of which events she should compete in given her injury history.
“Mentally it’s been really tough with the hamstring injury because you can reinjure it. You never know what’s going to happen. You’re never completely healed. You just have to wait and see when it gets better.” She said: “My hamstrings can be totally fine one day and then the next day when I run they can hurt like crazy. It was definitely a mental challenge and every time I went for a run I was terrified because I was scared I was going to hurt it.”
Ultimately, Hatton qualified to compete in the OHSAA State Track and Field Meet in three events: the long jump, 4×400-meter relay and 4×800-meter relay.
The 4×800, in particular, has been an unexpected source of success for Hatton.
“In my last combined event I tried the 800m. I ran it in 2 minutes 26 seconds, which was pretty good, but I really hated it.” Hutton said. “But then I ended up on the 4×8 team.”
Hutton, Maggie Hopple, Maggie Hall and Megan Stafford took second place at state in the Division II 4×800-meter relay at Dayton. Individually, Hutton placed 11th in the long jump, which began immediately after the 4×400.
Despite the setbacks and uncertainty surrounding his hamstring injury, Hutton plans to play three sports at the University of Mount Union.
“Every time a season goes by it becomes my favorite sport…so I don’t see myself quitting sports.”
She said one of her reasons for deciding to go to college was to continue her path as a three-sport athlete even if she wasn’t accepted at Youngstown State, and this is just the latest example of Hatton doing things her own way.
“I always wanted to go to YSU, but there was some special reason. I don’t know. I just didn’t want to regret choosing sports.” “Basketball is my main sport, but I also love soccer and track and field. I had a good soccer offer from the University of Akron, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to pursue soccer exclusively,” Hatton said.
“Mount Union gave me the opportunity to try all three sports, which is rare. I felt it was the right decision to continue with all three sports and have no regrets.”
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