FOXBURG — Emma Fox sprints down the track.

Out of habit, she counts her steps, waiting to explode over a hurdle.

The only thing is there are no hurdles on the track. It's a new experience for Fox and something she has a laugh about.

“It sounds silly, but it's a lot different running for me without hurdles on the track,” Fox said, letting out a chuckle. “But I enjoy it.”

Fox, now a senior on the A-C Valley girls track and field team, has made a name for herself in the 100- and 300-meter hurdles.

She advanced to the PIAA Track and Field championships in both events last spring and also qualified for the state meet as a sophomore in the 100 hurdles.

This spring, Fox is branching out.

In a meet against Karns City on Tuesday, Fox won four individual events — both hurdles, as well as the 100- and 200-meter dash.

“We're sort of experimenting with her this year,” said A-C Valley track and field coach Dave Sherman.

That has included removing her for now from a 1,600-meter relay team that is already missing Olivia Boocks, who suffered a knee injury during basketball season, and using her in four individual events.

Tuesday was the first time she ran the 200 and she finished with a time of 27.8 seconds.

“They called first call and I said to my mom (Stacey Fox), who is a coach, 'Can I run that?' She said, 'Yeah, sure. Go ahead,'” Emma Fox said. “I was just kind of running it to run it and I didn't even know what a good time was.”

Fox was less than a second off the school record time in the event of 26.9 seconds set by Chelsea McKinney.

She also ran a time of 13.1 in the 100.

Not bad on a cold and blustery afternoon.

And not bad considering the two events are run one after the other.

“It's not as difficult as you would think,” Fox said. “You have some time with the boys running and then taking the hurdles off the track.”

Fox isn't a stranger to multitasking.

As well as running track, Fox is also a member of the basketball team, golf team and the competitive cheerleading team at A-C Valley.

She also has a gymnastics background and that serves her well in the hurdles — an event usually reserved for tall, lanky athletes, not for one as muscular and compact as the 5-foot-6 Fox.

“I definitely think my speed helps carry me over the hurdles,” Fox said.

And so does her determination to prove she belongs among the best in the event, not matter her height.

“I wouldn't say I have a chip on my shoulder, but people do see me go out there against taller runners and wonder if I can do it,” Fox said.

Fundamentals are even more important to Fox and she works on them constantly.

“My legs aren't as long, so I really have to work on getting my steps down,” Fox said. “Every night we do drill after drill after drill workout. We work hard on the small things.

“It definitely gets boring sometimes,” Fox added. “But at the end the reward is amazing.”

Sherman thinks her diminutive size and strong leg muscles work to her advantage.

“She has tight muscles and is a compact athlete,” Sherman said. “She's very explosive.”

Fox is using her work in the sprints to get faster for when she runs the hurdle events — with those familiar obstacles in the way.

Fox goal is to again reach the state championships and handle the experience better.

“What I learned the last two times I went is to not get my nerves worked up,” Fox said. “My 10th-grade year, I was super nervous and when I went back last year, I was still really nervous. There's lots of other things going on at the same time and it's a completely different atmosphere.

This year if I make it back, I'm going to take in the experience,” Fox added. “I'm going to keep those nerves in check.”