Prentice, Reilly lead track girls
By: Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
Trish Reilly and Jillian Prentice wanted to make sure they ended the outdoor track and field season on a high note.
Now both have the chance at the ultimate after reaching the Meet of Champions for the first time in the spring season.
Prentice emerged from a competitive 3,200 field to finish third overall at the Group IV state meet on Saturday.
”I’ve never made it to the Meet of Champions for track,” said the Montgomery High School sophomore, who finished in 11:00.80. “Last year, I got injured. It’s like a different feeling from making it for cross country. I’m really excited.
”The day before in the 1,600 I didn’t have as good a race as I was hoping for,” she added. “The 3200, I was hoping to dwell. It was my last shot. I was hoping to get in that top six no matter what. It was a really big motivation. I didn’t want to finish the season on a bad note.”
Reilly emerged from much longer odds. The West Windsor-Plainsboro North junior finished sixth in the Group III 1,600 meters Friday, but that doesn’t tell the whole story.
Reilly advanced from the unseeded heat, which she won in 5:04.04. She had entered Friday with a seed time of 5:13.23 and it was just her third 1,600 of the season due to injury. And after racing and winning by nearly 60 meters, she had to watch the seeded heat in hopes of advancing with one of the top six times or one of the next six fastest times among all groups as a wild card.
”I was more stressed out watching the seeded heat than running my own race,” Reilly said, “knowing the fate of making the Meet of Champions was in the hands of some fast girls.
”I was just standing watching the finishing clock. I was speechless. I didn’t know what to say.”
The two are part of the representatives from all four Packet-area schools to reach the MOC that begins 3:30 p.m. Wednesday in South Plainfield. Montgomery leads the way with five qualifiers. Fiona Paladino was sixth in the high jump while Jessica Perone (seventh in 400 hurdles), Carlee Rosenthal (seventh in javelin) and Laura Ng (tied, seventh in pole vault) advanced as wild cards out of Group IV.
”That’s pretty good,” said MHS head coach Jim Goodfriend. “It would have been better if a few more medaled, but the competition was tough.
”Five girls might be the most I’ve ever brought. I’m looking for them to have fun.”
Also in Group IV, Katie Kellner, who was sixth in the 3,200, and Tia Williams, who advanced as a wild card with a seventh-place shot put finish in a new personal record 37-feet-5¾, advance from West Windsor-Plainsboro South.
”Tia Williams had an amazing day in the shot put,” said Pirates head coach Todd Smith. “She did enough to get out. She had a huge PR in last throw that catapulted her to the Meet of Champions.
”Katie survived a real tactical two-mile. There were some really big guns in there and no one was willing to take the reins. She got sixth place and got to move to the Meet of Champions as well.”
Princeton High sends Megan Wiseman, who was third in the long jump at 17-feet. WW-P North’s Chelsea Walters also jumped 17-feet, but Wiseman got third based on her next farthest jump to break the tie.
”She didn’t make it until the last jump,” said Knight girls’ coach Bill Mealy. “She’d like to get back in the 18s. The nice thing is by making it, she gets another shot. Sometimes at this point, that’s the name of the game – advance and give yourself a chance.”
Reilly is thrilled to have earned another chance. She hasn’t had many races this season. After making the Indoor Meet of Champions in the 1,600, she came down with a stress reaction in her tibia and a calf muscle strain.
”It was a very frustrating season when I was injured,” she said. “After having all that, it was such a great feeling to go on. I felt like I got back in the swing of things.”
Reilly spent time in the pool doing workouts, and also rode the bike during two weeks away from running. She came back slowly and didn’t seriously compete until the Mercer County Championships. She went on to finish third in sectionals and the Knights felt she had another good race in her.
”She wasn’t in the seeded heat in sectionals,” Mealy said. “By herself, she ran 5:12. That helped. It gave us a glimpse of what she can do and she was feeling pretty good afterwards. That was the main thing that made everybody confident.”
Added Reilly: “As of the last race, I had a fresh mindset that I was healthy and had to make the best of the rest of my season. I’ve basically forgotten about my injury now.”
Reilly is hoping she has one more big race in her. She’ll toe the line Wednesday looking to stun the field again.
”I definitely want to place in the top six,” Reilly said. “I always want to win. It’s always a goal to break five (minutes). I’m looking forward to finally doing that.
”I want to do a combination of being able to place well and running a big PR. I want to finish the season with an amazing race.”
It should help that she appears to have a time good enough to run in the seeded heat this time.
”That will make all the difference in the world,” Mealy said. “She ran 5 minutes in winter track. She just barely missed breaking 5 minutes. I’m sure that was going to be her goal for the spring. When she’s running with those girls, maybe she has a shot at it.”
Prentice, too, has big goals for the season finale. She has just one race to concentrate on, and learned at groups what the competition is like.
”Nothing has really been like that, with so many people so good,” Prentice said. “There were eight or 10 girls in a big pack. I haven’t had a race like that this year. I was in that top pack basically from the start. I just tried to hold onto it for as long as possible.
”I don’t know if the race will be the same (Wednesday) or the atmosphere, but I’m hoping this group meet will really help me. I don’t know what to expect. I’m hoping this meet will help me prepare. I know it’ll be so much faster at the Meet of Champions.”
Prentice and Paladino are young, but the sophomore and freshman hold the best chance for the Cougars to earn a medal the MOC.
”Paladino is one of the best high jumpers in the state,” Goodfriend said. “She has a chance to medal. Five-foot-six could win it. Prentice, she has a shot. If Prentice goes and runs the way she’s capable of, there’s no doubt in my mind she can run 10:50s. She might get close to being in the top eight or nine. I don’t know who’s going to be in it.”
Prentice has made a slow climb to the MOC level. Unlike many competitors who compete on the track year-round, she spent the winter swimming for the MHS team. It took her until the big invitationals to feel she was back to top running condition, but she’s put together her best season yet.
”One of my big goals was to make it to Meet of Champs,” she said. “Another was to break 11 minutes. I’ve done both of them. I still want to do well.”
And finish up on a high note.