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Jul. 2—A young Eva Armstead walks through the Hazlewood gym.
Her eyes drift to the rafters, where banners, plaques and photos tell the story of Hazlewood's past.
NFL stars look down at her: Kerry Goode, Antonio Langham among other Hazlewood legends whose accomplishments earned them a place on those walls.
Among them, Armstead sees an empty space waiting for her own story.
" I remember telling all my friends back then," she said "I'm going to be up there right beside them one day."
Years later, The Decatur Daily's 2026 Girls Track Athlete of the Year has already built a legacy of her own. Entering her final state meet in May, she owned 10 state championships and had already cemented herself as one of the most decorated athletes in county history.
Now, standing at the state track meet in Gulf Shores for the final time, she had one more chance to add an exclamation point to her story.
"I had gotten there maybe 15 minutes before my runtime and I was just like, 'Man, I'm so nervous,'" she said. "There was this group of boys and their coach, and they were like, 'There's some girl that was really fast in the 400. I don't know who she is, but she's really good.'"
Armstead is that girl. Last season she won every 400-meter dash she competed in. At the state meet last season, she finished over a second and a half ahead of the nearest runner, the same amount of time that separated second through fifth place.
But this year she didn't care if she won or lost, she just wanted to break into the 53-second mark.
She did more than break 54 seconds.
She broke the state's 400-meter record.
Armstead set a new Class 4A-7A outdoor state meet record, winning the girls Class 4A 400 meters with a time of 53.31.
Her mark was more than 2.5 seconds better than the second place finisher and her time ranks among the top 15 times clocked among high school runners in the country this year, according to the AHSAA.
"We went to the winner's circle and the announcer was like, 'Armstead 53.3, that's a state record. She just broke the state record.'" Armstead said. "Everybody just starts screaming and yelling. My family's crying; I instantly just broke down."
On top of that she won individual state championships in the 200 meter dash with a 24.95 and in the 100 meter dash with a 12.07.
This brings her tally to 13 state championships, more rings than she has fingers.
When she got home, people who had never met her were saying her name.
" Everybody around me swears that I'm like a mini-celebrity," Armstead said. "My friends hate going out. Like my best friend says 'Every time we go somewhere, somebody always has to speak to you.'"
She graduated in May as one of the county's most decorated athletes to ever come through.
Armstead will spend the next few years at the University of Alabama in Huntsville where she will continue to carry the name that means so much to her.
" Some people look at me and they're like, 'How can you be this if you come from Town Creek? A town that just has one gas station and a Dollar General." Armstead said. "Explaining it to them just makes me happy to be where I'm from."
Soon, Armstead will leave for Huntsville and the next chapter of her career.
The little girl who once looked up at Hazlewood's legends no longer has to imagine a place among them.
She's earned it.
Continue reading...
Her eyes drift to the rafters, where banners, plaques and photos tell the story of Hazlewood's past.
NFL stars look down at her: Kerry Goode, Antonio Langham among other Hazlewood legends whose accomplishments earned them a place on those walls.
Among them, Armstead sees an empty space waiting for her own story.
" I remember telling all my friends back then," she said "I'm going to be up there right beside them one day."
Years later, The Decatur Daily's 2026 Girls Track Athlete of the Year has already built a legacy of her own. Entering her final state meet in May, she owned 10 state championships and had already cemented herself as one of the most decorated athletes in county history.
Now, standing at the state track meet in Gulf Shores for the final time, she had one more chance to add an exclamation point to her story.
"I had gotten there maybe 15 minutes before my runtime and I was just like, 'Man, I'm so nervous,'" she said. "There was this group of boys and their coach, and they were like, 'There's some girl that was really fast in the 400. I don't know who she is, but she's really good.'"
Armstead is that girl. Last season she won every 400-meter dash she competed in. At the state meet last season, she finished over a second and a half ahead of the nearest runner, the same amount of time that separated second through fifth place.
But this year she didn't care if she won or lost, she just wanted to break into the 53-second mark.
She did more than break 54 seconds.
She broke the state's 400-meter record.
Armstead set a new Class 4A-7A outdoor state meet record, winning the girls Class 4A 400 meters with a time of 53.31.
Her mark was more than 2.5 seconds better than the second place finisher and her time ranks among the top 15 times clocked among high school runners in the country this year, according to the AHSAA.
"We went to the winner's circle and the announcer was like, 'Armstead 53.3, that's a state record. She just broke the state record.'" Armstead said. "Everybody just starts screaming and yelling. My family's crying; I instantly just broke down."
On top of that she won individual state championships in the 200 meter dash with a 24.95 and in the 100 meter dash with a 12.07.
This brings her tally to 13 state championships, more rings than she has fingers.
When she got home, people who had never met her were saying her name.
" Everybody around me swears that I'm like a mini-celebrity," Armstead said. "My friends hate going out. Like my best friend says 'Every time we go somewhere, somebody always has to speak to you.'"
She graduated in May as one of the county's most decorated athletes to ever come through.
Armstead will spend the next few years at the University of Alabama in Huntsville where she will continue to carry the name that means so much to her.
" Some people look at me and they're like, 'How can you be this if you come from Town Creek? A town that just has one gas station and a Dollar General." Armstead said. "Explaining it to them just makes me happy to be where I'm from."
Soon, Armstead will leave for Huntsville and the next chapter of her career.
The little girl who once looked up at Hazlewood's legends no longer has to imagine a place among them.
She's earned it.
Continue reading...
