Nike Indoor Nationals 2010
By: Stephen Bain
After visiting the city of Boston, it has topped my list of favorite cities I've been to. This list includes San Diego, Chicago, New York, St. Petersburgh, Orlando, and many other places scattered throughout the west.
However, for a high school athlete to be willing to travel to Boston for the purposes of competing against the best in the nation (and some from Canada), it shows a lot of dedication. Beyond that, it shows a lot of parental support to help fund and plan such a trip. Dana Neer was able to get in touch with me and let me know how a Hoosier-trio was enjoying Boston. Three runners, from 2 different schools, traveled together to Boston and not only competed, but came back with All-American honors. Connor Martin (Westfield) joined both of Culver Academy's stand-outs, Waverly Neer and Alejandr Arroyo for the experience.
Waverly Neer ran a 17:42 to place 6th in the 5k, claiming All-American honors. She also broke the 5:00 barrier in the FULL mile, setting a new school record at 4:59.99. Here is a quick recap of Waverly's weekend:
Waverly: Overall, Im extremely pleased with the success and outcome of this weekend. I was encouraged by both results of my races in the fact that it has solidified, in my mind, the quality of my training this winter. For the 5k, I am most happy with the consistency of the race. Although I slightly struggled in my last mile, I was able to maintain the range I set out to run, and finish fairly close to breaking 17:40 in the 5k! The mile however, was the highlight of my weekend. I felt so strong and fast in that race. My goal was to break 5:00 in the full mile, and by doing it by 0.01 of a second only added to the excitement of the race. I took the lead right before the half way point and held it to the end to break the tape in my heat. These indoor meets have developed into an opportunity for me to experiment with different racing strategies and surge points from which I can apply what Ive learned to the outdoor meets to come. Ive only become more confident for the outdoor season, and greatly anticipate the competition it has in store!!!
Alejandro was 3rd in the 5k in 15:10. He also broke the school record in the mile while running a 4:22.18. Alejandro was very excited with his performances:
Alejandro: Well how should I start? I mean my smile is still frozen from Fridays results. I am very pleased with my performance on Friday. Getting All-American honors an placing third in my first indoor 5K was unbelievable for me! The race went pretty well for me. I did start a little behind but I was trying to keep and even tempo since the beginning of race, which I did. I really never knew what my exact placing was but later on I discovered I had passed the third place 3 laps to go. The last two laps were a little crazy for me since I believed the second to last lap to be my last lap. I took off and I felt great but when I got to the finish line I still had one more lap to go. I dont know how but I managed to keep the same tempo and end the race well. Again, I didnt know my placing, so when I saw my name and my place on the scoreboard I screamed for joy. I was so happy! And I was so happy with my mile as well! My main goal for the mile was to go after the school record which was a 4:31. I ended up running a 4:22. Overall, this weekend was very successful to me; however, it also opened new chances of improvement. I thank my coaches, family, and friends for all their support and I look forward to my next race!
Connor Martin had equal success to the previous two runners. He ran 15:12 for the 5k, good enough for All-American honors. He will be a force to deal with come this weekend at the HSR Finals.
Connor: I am content with my performance. I decided to run the 5k because I wanted to try something different, not the original mile or two mile. With that decision I knew losing focus during the long 25 lap race was going to be a major factor. I think I could have improved with that but I am happy with the outcome. It was a great experience, Boston is a awesome city, and the competition was obviously great. I feel like the rust is off. Looking forward to HSR next week.
I would like to thank the athletes for taking the time to submit brief reflections on their experiences. All three of these athletes have shown to not only be impressive in competition, but also as people. I also would like to thank Dana Neer for taking the time to call and give me updates of the meet, as my vacation ended on Thursday in Boston, meaning I was unable to attend the meet. I can speak on behalf of any fan of the sport, when I say that we look forward to seeing the successes these student-athletes will have in the near future.
