MacIntosh, Knights still strive for bests

North girls’ track tops Allentown

By: Justin Feil
   One of the things that Bill Mealy has been thrilled to see in his inexperienced West Windsor-Plainsboro North girls’ track and field team is the way they’ve improved their performance level every week.
   "We’ve been averaging about 30 personal bests per meet," said Mealy, a longtime assistant and now Knights’ first-year head coach. "That’s been nice to see."
   And while it might seem easy for the freshmen and first-year athletes to continually better their young personal records as they establish themselves, the Knights have had a big boost by the constant striving example of the seniors.
   In Wednesday’s 77-63 win over Allentown, Ashleigh MacIntosh tied two personal bests and set another yet the WW-PN senior still came away fuming about not doing better in her fourth event.
   "I wanted more than that," said MacIntosh, who won the 100 meters in 12.9 seconds, equal to her previous best, finished third in the 200 meters by equaling a previous best of 28.3 seconds and finished third in the long jump with a new best of 15 feet, 4¼ inches.
   "For the 100, I started with a 13.1 and knocked it down to a 12.9 so far. For the long jump, started with 14-5 and now I’m at 15-4. I want to knock down the 200 time too. I’m still stuck at 28.3 for the 200. I’m hoping to be at a 27 by the end of the season if I can knock that down."
   Beyond that, MacIntosh would also like to go beyond her best in the pole vault. It wasn’t her best day Wednesday, but she’ll look for a personal best in the midst of everything else when the Knights host Nottingham on Tuesday.
   "It is hard to put time into everything," MacIntosh said. "You try to get a good sprinting workout and balance the pole vault and long jump. I’m stuck at 8-feet for the pole vault. I keep tying it. Hopefully I can focus a little more time there.
   "Christine is getting 9-6 so she’s doing great. Hopefully at the Mercer County Relays (the following Saturday), I can get up to 8-6 and she can get up to 9-6 and we could be in the running for a medal."
   Wins haven’t come easily in a year in which the Knights have seen the likes of Colonial Valley Conference powers Notre Dame and Trenton on their schedule. Wednesday’s win over Allentown was a little more special because it avenged last year’s loss to them.
   "I do remember losing to Allentown," MacIntosh said. "It was close. This year, we knew it was going to be close again. We went in really determined to come out on top. Our team is really young. We have a lot of freshmen, but they’re really helpful. We have two freshmen in the 4×4. Hopefully we can keep going.
   "I’ve been in the program for four years. We really want to get across to the younger freshmen and sophomores what it’s about — being dedicated and putting the time in. It’s good we have a young team. For the future we have more athletes that will come out and do well. It’s a little stressful at times. But it’s nice to help the younger athletes. They are improving and achieving their goals."
   Wednesday, the Knights had a little bit of everything, from a Jade Phame-led sweep in the high jump, to going 1-2 in the 3200 with Trish Reilly and Julia Xu. Reilly also won the 1600 while Holland Thomas won the high and intermediate hurdles. Amy Farkas won the shot put and Samantha Botwin took the discus. WW-P North also picked up the crucial little points that added up to a win to make them 2-4 this season.
   "We got a number of firsts," Mealy said. "It’s the second and thirds you pick up that are big too. You’ll see if the top one or two kids placed. There are a lot of seconds and thirds that are left up for grabs. It’s important that kids run for those.
   "We were very close as far as talent to Allentown. I guess that depth might have been the difference. For the majority of the meet, it was a 4-point difference. It didn’t spread out until the last four events."
   By then, MacIntosh had done her part to put the Knights in position for the win. She has continued to improve season by season thanks to her year-round dedication. In addition to her spring participation, she also trains in the winter indoor season with the Knights.
   "It made me a lot more prepared," she said. "You see the competition, and see where teams are at. It helped bring some of my times down."
   Added Mealy, "She’s had constant improvement. Every year you think, ‘That’s probably as good as she can get in it.’ Then she comes back and does it again. When she broke 13 this year I was happy for her. Now she’s consistently done it. Last year, her best was 13.1.
   "She’s not what you’d call a natural sprinter. She just works really hard at it and doesn’t give up."
   MacIntosh originally focused on the pole vault while also long jumping for the Knights since freshman year. Then, junior year, she stepped in to fill a void left by graduation in the 100 and 200. Now she’s nearing the end of her career, but won’t be slowing down with some of the biggest meets yet to come.
   "The competition is going to get definitely a little higher," MacIntosh said. "There’s a little more pressure to do well. We have to go in knowing we can do it. Hopefully we can put some good relay teams together. We’re trying to put some quality relays together and get some school records before I graduate."
   A few more personal records wouldn’t be so bad either. They just might help her walk away satisfied from her final meet, and help the Knights wrap up a season in which victories like the one over Allentown show plenty of promise for the future.
   "Going against Notre Dame and Trenton, it hurts a little bit," MacIntosh said. "We just have to come back and have to fight through it. We knew it would be close. We gave it everything we’ve got."
   And still the WW-P North girls’ track and field team wanted a little more, which will keep them working hard to the end of the season.