Mapp takes third in 800 at state meet

Winter track

By: Jim Green
   The Hopewell Valley Central High School winter track team already achieved its top goal of defending its titles at the Group II relay and individual championship meets.
   So it came as little surprise the Lady Bulldogs were not in prime form at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s Meet of Champions, which is without team standings.
   "They (the Lady Bulldogs) are more geared for team things over individual meets," Hopewell Valley girls track coach Aaron Oldfield said. "And they really like relays."
   Hopewell Valley had nothing left to prove as a team this season, having already wiped out its competition at both Group II meets. The Meet of Champions, involving the top performers from each event at the four group championships, provided the Lady Bulldogs an opportunity to shine individually.
   But without a team championship to shoot for, the Lady Bulldogs were not a dominant squad Sunday at Princeton University’s Jadwin Gym. Hopewell Valley’s highest finisher was sophomore Natalie Mapp, who placed third in the 400-meter dash with a time of 58.34 seconds, less than a second behind winner Okechi Ogbuokiri of Willingboro.
   "Natalie Mapp’s performance was outstanding," Oldfield said.
   Senior Jessie Pall, who finished second in the 800 run at the Group II individual championships earlier in the month, dropped to eighth at the Meet of Champions. The improved competition (there were 30 runners in each event) caused Pall to drop six places despite improving her time by more than a second.
   Seniors Kate Willever and Sara Seiler both qualified in the 1,600 by placing second and sixth, respectively, at the group meet. Both posted improved times at the state meet, with Willever coming in 14th at 5:25.99 and Seiler taking 15th at 5:27.75.
   Seiler’s time was nearly four seconds better than the 5:31.69 she posted at the group championships.
   "Getting there (the Meet of Champions) is an accomplishment in itself," Oldfield said. "Were we where we wanted to be? No.
   "But, to finish in the top half is still an accomplishment."
   The Lady Bulldogs’ 4×400 relay team of Willever, Pall, Mapp and sophomore Emily Palombo, which came in second at the group meet, dropped to 11th Sunday. However, the team’s time of 4:09.90 was nearly four seconds faster than the mark it posted at the Group II championships.
   In comparison, Hopewell Valley had three top-nine finishes at the 2002 Meet of Champions. Pall and Willever placed fourth and ninth, respectively, in the 800, while the Lady Bulldogs’ relay team took eighth.
   "I think they (the Lady Bulldogs) are disappointed," he said. "Any time you have the best competition, it’s really hard to run your race. There’s a lot of stepping around. That definitely affected the races."
   The Lady Bulldogs also knew they would have difficulty setting personal bests on Princeton’s slow turf and, therefore, might have had difficulty preparing mentally for the Meet of Champions.
   "Going in, they (runners) know they’re not going to run a great time," he said. "That plays into it."
   The Lady Bulldogs traveled to New York on Tuesday for the Eastern State championships. They took third in the distance medley relay (12:19), while Mapp came in eighth in the 200 dash (26.16).