Thomas, Leung garner medals
By: Justin Feil
Gold may be preferable, but bronze still made for an inspiring end to the New Jersey indoor track and field season.
West Windsor-Plainsboro North’s Holland Thomas and WW-P South’s Brian Leung were the top two Mercer County athletes at the Meet of Champions hosted at Toms River last weekend. Thomas finished third in the 55-meter hurdles in 8.32 seconds to pick up a bronze medal Saturday.
"Holland was seeded fourth going in and finished third," said Knights head coach Brian Gould. "So she finished higher than her seed, and she ran a personal best twice. She ran 8.37 and came back in 8.32. She went in with a goal of winning and the girl from East Orange, she ran a great race and then 2-3-4 dove across the line together. (Thomas) outleaned a girl for third place. She was focused. She was well prepared. To see her leave with a bronze medal is nice.
"She’s a competitor," he added. "She demands a lot of herself. I wouldn’t say she was satisfied, but she was happy. She definitely accomplished something. Finishing third in the state is a big accomplishment."
Leung also picked up bronze when he finished third in the 3,200-meter run. Leung’s time of 9:20 trailed just winner Craig Forys of Colts Neck and Doug Smith of Gill-St. Bernards on Sunday.
"At this point, I think it’s pretty clear he belongs with about anybody," said Pirates distance coach Kurt Wayton. "He looked comfortable. Save those two or three laps where he second-guessed himself, he was right with everyone."
Leung came on strong in the final six laps to top James Grimes of Chatham, Old Bridge’s Matt Ciambriello, Randolph’s Zach Bahor and Kyle Soloff of Morris Hills.
"It went out conservative," Wayton said. "Midway through, there was a big uncomfortable move. He let about four or five guys get a jump on him and then kind of reeled them in. He had a lot left. I think he finished with a 65 (second final 400). His last 600 was in 1:40. He was really hustling the last three or four laps and he used that to reel in everyone.
"He caught Matt Ciambriello and Kyle Soloff, who was second at the Millrose Mile and ran 4:15. It’s really speaking to the level that Brian is at that he could reel him in, in the last three laps. He did well at cross country at the end. He ran a fast time at the varsity classic. I still don’t think he knows how good he is."
Certainly finishing that high in the Meet of Champions is a good clue. There were other Packet-area athletes who also found encouraging results at Toms River. Princeton High’s Libby Bliss was eighth in the 800 meters in 2:18.76, eight seconds faster than she ran at last year’s MOC. Trish Reilly of WW-P North was ninth in the 1,600 meters in 5:06.43, a time that would have been good for third last year at the MOC.
"It’s amazing," Gould said. "Anything she puts her mind to, she succeeds in. When you’re running under 5:10 and dropping to 5:06, that’s a lot of time. She won the (slower) heat, then she watched the (faster) race. Nothing more could have done. I think she ran awesome."
Reilly was the top Mercer County finisher in the 1,600 meters Saturday. WW-P South’s Sammy Howell tied for ninth in the high jump at 5-feet-2. In the 3,200 meters, Montgomery High School’s Amanda Herrmann finished 16th in 11:22. The PHS 4×400 relay of Bliss, Hannah Davis, Hannah Deming and Molly Johnson was 20th.
In boys’ action Sunday, WW-P South’s Andrew Long cleared 12-feet-6 to tie for seventh in pole vault, PHS’ Mike Grier tied for 12th in the high jump when he cleared 6-feet, MHS’ Jon Freimark placed 16th in the 800 meters in 2:01.20, PHS’ Dan Cavallaro and WW-P North’s Sean McNulty competed in the 1,600 meters, as did the Pirates’ 4×400 relay of Stuart Adams, Wes Tuck, Jeff Riemann and Joe Brown. WW-P North’s Joon Lee also competed in the pole vault.
Several athletes’ indoor season is not over yet. Thomas and Leung will be among the competitors who will enter the Eastern Invitational today. Both will also compete at the Indoor Nationals in Landover, Md., the following weekend as will some of their teammates.
"Holland is ready for Easterns Tuesday and the 60 hurdles in Maryland on the 11th at nationals," Gould said. "And her efficiency and strength should give her a chance at winning the 100 hurdles at the state meet this spring. She’s ready."
As for Reilly, she continues to improve at a remarkable pace. She will compete with the Knights’ distance medley relay today at Easterns.
"She’s been running a lot of miles," Gould said. "She raced the mile the last five or six weeks in a row. When we go to Easterns, she’s going to run the 1,200 leg. The goal would be to go out and feel what sub-5:00 pace feels like. If she can drop a 72 or 73 (second 400 meters) off 2:28, then I think she’s ready to go under 5:00. We’ll break up the monotony of running all these miles. At nationals, she’ll run the 4xmile Saturday. Then Sunday, she’ll run the open mile."
Leung will compete in the mile at today’s Easterns before setting his sights on making an impact at nationals. He continues to make his mark in distance running.
"We talked about our dream goals," Wayton said. "On the road, there are steps. Our step for indoor was we thought a nice 9:20 would be good. He’s run that or under twice now. If he can keep his head about him at Nike Indoor, I think he’ll exceed that to no small degree. Outdoors, if he builds on that just a little bit, it’s still a ridiculous time. We could make some serious pushes to something that hasn’t been done in this area if he stays illness- and injury-free. I don’t think focus is a problem."