Junior will face Group III’s best
By: Justin Feil
Holland Thomas wasn’t very good in the indoor track and field season last year.
The proof is in the numbers.
At the Group III state meet last winter, Thomas was 49th in the 400 meters in 1:08.08. She was 45th in the 55-meter hurdles in 10.63 seconds.
"Last year, they just stuck me in the hurdles," Thomas said. "It was like, I don’t practice hurdles. But I did it. I didn’t care."
Now a West Windsor-Plainsboro North junior and on the verge of qualifying for the nationals in hurdles, Thomas knows well those statistics.
"I look at it all the time," Thomas said. "It’s motivating to see how much I improved over a year. It’s been crazy."
Thomas enters the Group III state meet that will be held at Princeton University’s Jadwin Gym on Sunday as one of the top hurdlers in the state. She covered the 55 hurdles in 8.69 seconds to finish eighth at the Citibank Hispanic Games in early January. Earlier in the season, she finished behind only national-caliber hurdlers Ryann Krais of Methacton and Kneshia Sheard of West Catholic at the Burdette Classic at Lehigh University. Thomas is only hundredths of a second away from qualifying for nationals.
"She was one of our better sprinters the last two years," said WW-P North head coach Brian Gould. "The big difference for her is she really worked throughout the summer. She did a lot of training through the summer. She found some summer meets and worked on her fitness. She came into the season in shape and determined to succeed, not just better her best, but put herself in position to do something in states."
Added Thomas, "Last year, I was kind of lazy. This year, I’ve been working all year round."
Thomas’ climb to one of the state’s elite began last spring when her father taught her how to three-step for the hurdles. The three-step approach separates serious from seasonal hurdlers.
"I saw I was good at it," Thomas said. "I kept working at it all through the year. I was working hard in field hockey season trying to keep in shape for indoor track. I decided it was hard for me to go very far if I didn’t stay in shape.
"I’ve always wanted to be good. I don’t think I ever expected to come this far. Since I’m only a junior, I only expect to get better and keep improving and keep going further."
Thomas has very clear goals. They are sky-high, but with the improvement she made in less than a year’s time, no one would go so far as to say they are impossible to achieve.
"I hope I get a scholarship next year," she said. "I want to go to the Olympics someday."
It would make for quite a story. Thomas’ turnaround has come complete with a new attitude to go with her new and improved times. It’s an attitude that won’t let her be mediocre.
"I didn’t care before when I did badly," she said. "Now I’m really upset."
The converse is true as well. When Thomas does well, she’s really excited. Gould tells a story of when Thomas produced her new personal best for the 400, a blazing 1:01.8 seconds.
"After she ran her best quarter," he recalled, "she said, ‘I can’t see, but I feel great.’ She’s competing on the track more. It means everything to her."
Added Thomas, "Everything was blurry. The other day when I ran 64 (seconds), I knew I didn’t run my best. I wasn’t feeling the pain. I know I do well when I do that."
Thomas will be looking to make it burn at the state Group III meet Sunday. She’ll be competing along with athletes from other Packet-area schools WW-P South, Princeton High and Montgomery High. Thomas’ focus is on taking on the elite in the state. She has already run against some of the top hurdlers in the country at the Burdette Classic and in the Hispanic Games. Those experiences were helpful in showing what she needs to reach the next level.
"I learned I need to get a better start," Thomas said. "I watched the video of (the Hispanic Games) over and over and saw how slow it was. That’s my main focus now, my start."
In the big outlook, Thomas knows this year is just a starting point for her. It’s only her first year of truly dedicating herself to the sport and it has paid off quickly. Her rewards have her motivated to keep improving.
"It does feel like a start," she said. "I’m starting to get better and get into the flow of being a good hurdler and an elite athlete. That’s what my coaches call me."
The Knight coaches like the example of what hard work has done for Thomas. It’s an example they can use for their other athletes, whether they’re talking about training or racing.
"She’s a captain," Gould said. "All the girls feed off her. She has some girls pushing her. But she’s the one out there putting in the work and taking the lead. She has a tremendously positive attitude. She’s not carrying any excuses or doubts into any races. She wants to win. If she doesn’t, she’s mad."
Thomas credits teammate Caitlin Wilson with helping push her through workouts. Wilson, a sophomore, has made practices competitive as well.
"I was amazed by her talent," Thomas said. "I don’t know if I would have done so great if she wasn’t there. She’s amazing. We always push each other so hard."
With that sort of drive showing up in practice, it has carried over to meets. Winning Sunday may be a tall task, but getting a medal would be quite an accomplishment considering where Thomas was last year in the standings. Gould expects Thomas to show her competitive side in her biggest New Jersey meet to date.
"She’s been running well in everything she does, but the biggest change in her this year is she is incredibly competitive now," Gould said. "She’s not afraid of anybody. She looks for the big races and wants to prove herself. And she’s been coming through.
"She’s broken all the school records. She’s taken big chunks off her PRs. She’s run 27.1 in the 200. She’s run 61.8 in the 400. She’s run 8.69 in the high hurdles. She’s working so hard and it’s paying off."
And it’s only a beginning for Holland Thomas. She still has the spring season to go this year and her senior year left before her.
"I look at all the times and look at where I want to be," she said. "I want to go to the Meet of Champions and I want to go to nationals."