NEWTON — Sydney Kinder felt she was at her “peak” when she was a sophomore on the Newton track and field team.
That season saw Kinder compete in the 400-meter dash, the 4×100, 4×200, and the 4×400-meter relay races, as well as the long and triple jump. She set a season-best in the triple jump with a leap of 32 feet, 2.5 inches that year.
Kinder one-upped herself two years later.
The 2025 Effingham Daily News co-Field Athlete of the Year helped set a school record in the 4×100-meter relay at 49.95 seconds. She also set a school record in the triple jump with a leap of 35 feet, 1.5 inches.
“It was a surreal feeling,” said Kinder of breaking two school records.
Kinder said at the beginning of the season that she and her teammates set goals for the upcoming year. One of Kinder’s goals included reaching 35 feet in the triple jump.
She did that seven times.
Two of those occasions came during the indoor season. The first was at the Gene Armer Invitational on the campus of the University of Illinois, when she jumped 35 feet, 9.5 inches.
“We asked them to re-measure a couple of times because we didn’t believe the initial measurement,” Kinder said. “I didn’t want a faulty school record. Then, at the indoor state meet, I jumped over 35 (feet) again and it was a surreal feeling — I’d just crushed all of my goals.
“I never thought I’d have a school record.”
That set the stage for a stronger outdoor campaign.
Kinder won two triple jump events and placed in the top five in every meet she jumped at.
She ended the season with a fourth-place showing at the state meet, where she jumped 36 feet.
Personally, Kinder said she would take the outdoor season over the indoor.
“Indoor, you technically have perfect conditions, so you don’t have to worry about wind or rain or how hot or cold it is,” she said. “It’s a good start before you get to outdoor season.”
Both seasons ended with medals being draped around her head.
That was another goal for Kinder this season — more hardware.
“One of my goals was medaling at indoor and outdoor state,” she said.
Kinder finished fifth in the triple jump at the Illinois Top Times Championships.
“It was a big deal at indoor state, because I’ve never done that before,” Kinder said.
Achieving all the goals she set for herself, with this team, meant even more to her.
Kinder is, and always will be, a Lady Eagle at heart and she thanks all the countless people she’s met for that.
“Every year, you get to meet new people because there is a new class coming in and an old class leaving. Meeting new people and having this ‘sisterly’ bond and having those people you can lean on (means the world),” she said.
Kinder has had head coach Tim Bower for all four years of her high school career. Bower was an assistant coach during Kinder’s freshman year.
“Coach Bower is meant to be a girls’ coach,” Kinder said. “He couldn’t handle being a boys’ coach. He hears things he doesn’t want to hear and knows about things, but (our coaches) handle the drama well.
“He’s like our dad, who’s not our dad.”
Bower said that Kinder dual-sported her freshman year. She was also on the softball team.
Things changed once she fully committed to track and field.
“She felt she was caught between the two,” Bower said. “I felt like once she committed herself fully to track and it became her only sport for the next three years, she was all-in. She was constantly communicating with me and always wanted to get better.”
Over that time, Bower mentioned that Kinder became a leader to the rest of the team.
“She became a great leader. She was a captain in her junior and senior years,” Bower said. “She was easy to follow.”
Bower’s assistant for the past three years has been Morgan Lidy.
Kinder said that both go above and beyond for their athletes.
“They’re always doing stuff for us and spending extra time out of real practice to help you with whatever you need, especially if you’re learning something new,” Kinder said.
For Kinder, that came in the high jump this year.
“It was kind of a joke,” Kinder said. “I wanted to high jump for fun at the Robinson Triangular. I ended up being a little better at it than I thought I would.”
Kinder jumped 4-feet, 8-inches at that meet.
She then tried the event again at the team’s next meet, but it wasn’t the same result. Kinder jumped 4-feet, 4-inches, and from there, she went back to focusing on the triple jump.
That focus has always been there for Kinder, but the confidence hasn’t.
She gives credit to her older sister, Payton, who was also an athlete at Newton.
“(Payton) has the utmost confidence in herself and I didn’t possess that,” Sydney said. “She helped me with confidence and being that role model.”
– Pick up Thursday’s edition of the Effingham Daily News for the second EDN Field Athlete of the Year feature, plus both EDN Softball Player of the Year features.