Keri Wood sets goals then carefully evaluates the best way to achieve them. And with half a lap to go in the 1,600 meters, she's also the last person you want to have running at your shoulder.

That's when all of the measured planning gives way to sheer will and her competitive fire. That's when she wants to beat you.

On a Mike A. Myers track where she has been running since her freshman season, Wood has one final high school race to run. They fire the gun to start the Class 5A girls 1,600 meters at 7:35 p.m. Saturday at the UIL Track & Field Championships.

"This year, my whole goal was to make it to state," Wood said. "Our region got a lot more competitive this year with redistricting, which made it a lot more difficult to go to state. Having gone the past two years, it makes me really hungry to go and get that chance to compete."

It has been a season-long source of inspiration during the longest track season of her life because of rescheduled events.

"It's my last opportunity to compete at state in the UIL, and that's something that been on my mind all season," Wood said. "When workouts got really tough, I told myself this is my motivation. I really want to make it to state and I had to work really hard this year to do so."

Wood set a career best time in the 1,600 at the Region II meet at Baylor's Hart-Patterson Track Complex, dueling to the finish with The Woodlands' Sarah Andrews before Andrews edged ahead late.

Wood finished in 4 minutes, 57.20 seconds. It was the second time in her career that she broke the five-minute mark in her signature event, and it was the second-fastest run in the Texas high school ranks this year.

"That was the hardest she had ever run," Consol girls track coach Rodney Wellmann said, adding that Wood's fitness level usually allows her to recuperate quickly after a race. "I had never seen her like that after a race. She was still woozy 30 minutes later."

With the second-place finish, Wood eliminated one of the state's top 1,600 runners in Ashley Isham from Vista Ridge, but there is no clear path to the medal stand in Austin.

Andrews, the junior standout, leads a superb field of runners at state. She has run a state-best 4:54.64 and will also compete in the 3,200 on Saturday morning. Plano's Rachel Johnson and Coppell's Kim Kirby, both sophomores, have also broken the five-minute mark.

Wood is as good of a student of her sport is she was a student at Consol, but she's also capable of adapting on the fly.

"I do think about the races beforehand and understand who my competitors are, what their strengths and weaknesses are, so I know overall how I need to race," said Wood, who graduated from Consol last month and has signed to run for the University of Arkansas. "As races develop, things change, and you have to be able to adapt to that. That's something I have learned over the years. My sophomore year and even my junior year was a learning experience in tactical racing."

Experience may be Wood's advantage. She has run on the Myers Stadium track at the Texas Relays since her freshman year and has been at state in the 1,600 the last two years. She finished sixth as a sophomore, running 5:09.94, and was fifth last season in 5:05.59.

"My sophomore year, the pace went out really slow and all of the girls were about the same speed, so we all bunched up on each other," Wood said. "I didn't have a great race because I couldn't get out and couldn't get my stride going.

"The stadium is definitely intimidating. It's very beautiful, but when you get out on that track, it's a-whole-nother experience, especially when everyone is watching you. That stadium has a lot of memories for me, both good and bad. I've had great races there and not-so-great races there."

The long-legged Wood has a dangerous kick. Because of her long stride, she makes up or builds ground quickly and impressively.

"Sometimes you have to take it out into the lead," she said. "Someone will inevitably follow you."

Temperatures are predicted to approach triple digits in Austin on Saturday, but Wood will not be near the track at that time.

"I'll stay cool and drink lots of water," Wood said. "Trying to stay cool in the shade is really important, so you don't end up tired before your race. I stay cool in the hotel room and then under the stands in the stadium."

Whatever Wood has to do to be prepared, she'll do it says Wellmann.

"She is completely intrinsically motivated in both athletics and academics," he said. "She doesn't let much of anything come between her and those goals. In fact, nothing does."

UIL State Track and Field Meet

Mike A. Myers Stadium, Austin

Tickets: Students- $5 per session; Adult -$10 per session; All session ticket -- $25; Saturday only ticket (good for both Sat. sessions) -- $15

Sessions & Running Events

8 a.m. Friday -- 1st Session: 3,200-meter runs -- 2A, 4A, 1A, 3A

6 p.m. Friday -- 2nd Session: 2A, 4A

8 a.m. Saturday -- 3rd Session: 3,200-meter runs -- 5A

Noon Saturday -- 3rd Session: 1A, 3A

6 p.m. Saturday, June 6 -- 4th Session: 5A