RATHDRUM - Living in North Idaho, athletes often find themselves looking for unique ways to remain at the top of their respective sports.

That is no different for Lakeland High senior Latecia Howell, a standout in the jumps and relays for the Hawks track and field team.

Howell is soon to be a fifth-generation graduate of Lakeland, and was born and raised on the family farm along the Rathdrum Prairie.

"Living on a farm has a lot of different perks," Howell said. "You've always got a place to run, plenty of hills and going (hay) bale jumping in the summer time is fun and helps me with my jumps."

Bale jumping is the practice of climbing on top of the giant round balls of hay when they've been moved off the field and jumping from one ball to the next.

From the farm to the field, the pending jump from the 4A Inland Empire League to Carroll College will not be approached any differently by Howell.

Howell helped the Hawks set a school record in the 4x400 meters as a freshman in 2008 and just surpassed the school mark for the triple jump with a leap of 36 feet, 4 inches at the Christina Finney Relays on March 25 at Post Falls High.

Howell will continue her track career at Carroll, an NAIA school in Helena, Mont., next year.

"In Helena, the community is so small," Howell said. "But they're into the college and school athletics. I visited with the track team and they are like a huge family. Even if we've got to come back early to train, it seems like a big family."

Howell feels she can adapt to the settings immediately.

"We've all got the same drive and determination to succeed," Howell said. "I could move over there next week and feel at home with the rest of the team."

A jumper most of her career at Lakeland, Howell has dabbled in the sprints this year, competing in the 100- and 200-meter dash for the first time in her high school career at a dual with Post Falls, Lake City and Coeur d'Alene last Tuesday at Viking Stadium.

"Her times in the 100 are coming along," Lakeland coach Lee Libera said. "We're probably going to have some options with her at the regional and state meet."

Howell added wins in the 100, long jump and triple jump over the weekend at the 17-team Rasmussen Invitational at Coeur d'Alene High.

When it comes to the school records, Howell is pleased with both, but said being part of the 4x400 relay in 4 minutes, 3.13 seconds was something special.

"It's hard to decide, but the 4x400 won us a state title when I was a freshman," Howell said. "The triple, as an individual, means a lot too."

That relay team included Kari Rucker, Blythe Jones and Camille Reynolds.

"I learned a lot from them about how to be a team leader," Howell said. "If I could pass that on, I'd give it to Kaitlyn (Whitesitt), Kristi (Wendle) and Darby (Murray). All of them have so much energy. I hope I can be half of what Camille and Kari were to me."

Howell's best finish at state as an individual came last year as a junior with a third-place finish in the long jump with a jump of 16-5 1/4. She has qualified in the long jump the past two years and the triple jump all three years.

"She's been great for us all four years," Libera said. "This year, she been tough in the triple jump and long jump."

Howell has competed with the Spokane Mercury track club for the past five summers, and was a high school coach last year.

"I learned that there was a lot more competition out there," Howell said. "There is a lot more out there than you realize out there."

She plans on returning next summer as a college intern.

"I could absolutely see myself becoming a coach," Howell said. "Track and field is my passion. After I'm done and past my prime, I still want to help others and pass that on."

Howell travels to meets around the northwest and country for 10 months a year.

"My parents (Larry Howell and Charlotte Brosch) are the ones that take me to and from every meet in the summer," Howell said. "I know I wouldn't be able to do a quarter of what I do without them."

Howell competes in the heptathlon for the Mercury, which involves competing in seven events over a two-day span.

"I could do 10 events if I could," said Howell of competition. "But my endurance isn't that good."

Howell credits her uncle, Randy Brosch, on getting her started in running.

"He really got me into cross country," Howell said. "It all started in seventh grade for me. It was the first year of the junior high program and coach (Shannon) Mattila made it fun. We'd get to play freeze tag and it was for practice."

She also credits Mike Normand, who coaches cross country and the jumpers at Lakeland, for fine-tuning her skills.

"He's the biggest support I've had," said Howell, who competed on the Hawks cross country team for three years. "He's an awesome guy."

Howell will join Lake City High product Rhianna Grossman, a distance runner, on the Carroll track roster next season.

The success of coach Matt Morris and the Carroll athletic program is also something that attracted her to Helena.

"This year was the first year of the track program," Howell said. "They've got a coach that's won at the Division I level and he's an awesome guy. It's going to be an awesome team."

Morris coached at Loyola Sacred Heart High in Missoula from 1996 to 2005, winning 11 state titles and 17 divisional championships before moving on to Western Illinois University.

Howell was also considering College of Idaho in Caldwell and Division III Whitworth University in Spokane.

At Carroll, Howell will focus on track and field despite the option to compete on the school's cross country team.

"I probably won't have the time with getting adjusted to the school," Howell said. "I'll probably focus my energy on track and field and competing in the heptathlon."

She is currently undecided on a major, but is interested in either accounting or studying English.

Howell, who is dual-enrolled at North Idaho College, missed the annual Lakeland Relays on April 15 in Rathdrum due to a state speech competition.

Howell also attended the state Business Professionals of America competition, where she was the president of her Parliamentary Procedure team.

"She's only competed in two meets due to other obligations this year," Libera said. "Hopefully she'll continue to improve in both the triple and long jump."

Mother Nature hasn't helped either this spring, but Libera believes that with some fine-tuning in the coming weeks, Howell can finish her high school career with exactly what she deserves.

"There's been a lot of top-notch athletes in this area," Libera said. "Latecia has always been competitive and can compete with anyone at any level. Hopefully she can stand up to that at the state meet. Carroll is a good school and she should be pretty competitive at that level."

"She's a really good friend," said senior and teammate Evan Baumer. "During the meets, she tries to make everyone relax and during practice is the one to keep everyone in line. She's really fun and laid back, but also serious and wants to get things done."

But first things first - Howell still has aspirations of setting a couple more records before graduation in June.

"It would mean so much," said Howell of winning a state 4A long jump title. "To start with a state title and end my career with one would be kind of awesome. To push through the butterflies as a freshman at state, I want to explode as a senior. In track, you go out and do your best, but the end result was all you."