End of Season Meeting

There will be a mandatory indoor track meeting immediately following school on Monday, March 1st. I will collect remaining uniforms and we will vote for next years captains. Please make appropriate arrangements.

A Shout Out to An Old Teammate

Check this video out. It is of a teammate of mine and fellow running Red Fox Adam Vess. Many of you know Adam since he ran for Xavier High School and has been a counselor at Green Mountain Running Camp. Vess discusses some of the transitions to college running and the ups and downs he has faced. This is a featured video on flotrack and it will be sure to bring some attention to the Marist program. Enjoy!

State Open Results/Feedback

Sorry for the delay, I caught one of the illnesses that have been going around and was sick yesterday.

4x800m Relay 9th 10:05.89 Tied Season Best

Jenna-2:34.4 Another solid performance from you, good job!
Amanda- 2:38.2 Finally dipped under that 2:40 mark, fantastic!
Sarah-2:30.5 Great split, you closed a pretty big gap.
Julie-2:22.4 Nicely Done!

55m Dash
Ashia 7.53. Not a bad way to finish out the season, you were impressive meet after meet. Well done!

1000m
Julie 2:56.59 3rd PR New England Qualifier. What a race! Only .33 separated 1st through 3rd. Unbelievable effort and I can't wait to see what you do at New Englands. Great job!

4x400m 11th 4:14.00 Season Best

Kylee 1:03.56 Not bad for being sick. Well done!
Taylor- 1:04.7 Fantastic race for you, you looked great!
Sarah- 1:03.7 Another great race for you.
Casey- 1:01.0 Great split!

You all ran very well, I was impressed!

HJ
Kylee-3rd 5-02.0 Great way to end your indoor career, fantastic job!

Shot
Rachel- 1st 43-09.0 Fantastic!

Great job to all of you. We tied for 7th with 23 points. Congratulations to all of those that have ended their indoor careers. Its been a great season. However, we still have a couple individuals continuing with the New England Championships in 2 weeks and the Nike Indoor National Meet in 3 weeks. Videos of the races can be found here.

Videos from Saturday

You can find videos from all the races on Saturday here. Enjoy!

State LL Class Meet Times/Feedback

4x800 Meter Relay 8th 10:05.62 Season best State Open Qualifier

Jenna 2:31.6 Absolutely stellar performance. You should be extremely proud of this, I am.
Amanda 2:40.3 You're still stuck on this time. It's ok though. I struggled with the same thing for a long time and sometimes still do. Believe me when I say it's all in your head. You have the ability to breakthrough and you will.
Sarah 2:30.5 Same as Amanda, you've been stuck on this time and again, believe me when I say it's in your head. You have the ability and you will prevail. I think whatever illness/bug you have/had set you back a little too but that's ok. You still ran a great split. I'm very proud of you for gutsying it out. Well done.
Julie 2:22.7 Another great race for you, nicely done.

55 Meter Dash State Open Qualifier
Ashia Prelims 7.52 Finals 7.46 Great performances in a deep field, nicely done! I am looking forward to Saturday.

300m
Ally-47.26 Solid time. I was hoping for you to break 47 but you've been dealing with illnesses and I think that took a lot out of you. Great end to a great season, nicely done!

Carla- 48.20 Same as Ally. Great season, you really impressed me.

600m
Sarah 1:45.89 I know you were disappointed in this but you ran a nice 800 split and you were sick. These things happen. Forget about it and concentrate on next week.
Taylor 1:50.39 Great race for you, nicely done!

1000m 2nd State Open Qualifier
Julie 2:57.61 I think you would agree this was the race of your life. You looked great and would have set the State Record if it wasn't for the Glastonbury girl. I'm extremely proud of you and you definitely deserved this race, congratulations! We will discuss race tactics this week. The girl from Glastonbury was nervous and she has a right to be.

1600m
Kathleen- 5:31.39 You are much faster than this so I don't really know what happened, one of those things I guess.

3200m
Amanda-12:32.97 Solid race but I know this isn't what you wanted. You're an extremely tough and smart racer, I think you just doubt yourself sometimes. We'll work on this. Nice job though!

Kathleen-11:48.41 Pr by 9 seconds, not too shabby. Ran negative splits. Good race for you!

4x200m 1:53.40
Jill 30.39 Good job!
Kylee 27.58 You looked great in this!
Casey 29.2 Nicely done!
Ashia 26.? Amazing race for you.

4x400m 3rd 4:15.73 State Open Qualifier Season Best
Kylee 1:02.9 Fantastic race!
Taylor 1:06.4 Very nice job, next week you can concentrate on this race alone.
Sarah 1:03.7 I was truly impressed with you for running this after the 600m. You ran tough and with heart, excellent job.
Casey 1:02.0 Fantastic race, you looked extremely impressive.

SMR
We were unfortunately dq'ed in this race. I was on the other side of the track still dealing with the Pole Vault situation. Coach Bennett took splits but I misplaced the card he wrote them on, I know we ran 4:46 which is faster than our previous mark so nice job to all you ladies. I would like to point out Meghan who I know ran 2:38 which was very impressive.

HJ 2nd State Open Qualifier
Kylee 5-02.00 Absolutely amazing. I got to watch some of your jumps and you looked great. Very impressive, nicely done!

PV I would like to apologize to the both of you for the situation that occurred. It should have never happened and I should have made sure we had the forms so I take full responsibility for what happened. You were able to put everything aside and still compete which I was very proud of, nice job!
Jen 7-06.00
Sarah 8-06.00

LJ
Alisha 13-10.5 Unfortunately today was not your day, sometimes these things happen. Good season though!

Shot
Rachel 1st 43-10.5 Another unbelievable performance, fantastic job!
Breslyn 28-01.5 A little off from SCC's but a solid performance, nice job!

This was an exciting meet for sure. We had our ups and downs but it was a solid day and I'm proud of all of you.

Practice Schedule

First off, Happy Valentines Day to all of you! I already posted who the State Qualifiers are. As of right now, we will practice Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. We will not have formal practice tomorrow. There is snow in the forecast for Tuesday but we will just have to wait and see about that. If things need to get changed around, I will be sure to let everyone know. Tomorrow you should do easy running, 2-5 miles followed by 6x75 meter accelerators or strides. We will do a workout either Tuesday or Wednesday depending on the weather and then go easy Thursday and Friday. The meet on Saturday is at 12pm. Right now, plan for practice at 10:30AM and we will meet in the commons. If that changes I will let you all know. Any questions/concerns/situations feel free to call me or e-mail me. Stay tuned for times and feedback from yesterday.

Nike Indoor National Meet

The following individuals have met the qualifying standards for the Nike Indoor National Meet
Rachel
Ashia
Sarah
Julie
Kathleen (Limited to top 30 freshman times).

You can find all the information here. From my understanding, all athletes would have to pay entry fees and associated costs out of pocket. The cost is $35 per event. The meet is at the historic Reggie Lewis Center in Boston, so you would probably not need to get a hotel and the trip could be made in a day. Regular registration is open until February 28th. You need to register online and the link is provided on the website. I just wanted to make these individuals aware and we'll be discussing this more this week.

State Open Qualifiers

The State Open Qualifiers have just been published. You can take a look at all the Open qualifiers here. The following is a list of the Cheshire Lady Rams who will be competing next weekend (I included seed place). Congratulations to all of you!

Rachel Shot 1st
Kylee High Jump 2nd
4x800 (Jenna, Amanda, Sarah, Julie, Caitlyn, Kathleen) Relay 10th
Ashia 55m 10th
Julie 1000m 2nd
4x400 (Kylee, Taylor, Sarah, Casey, Meghan) 11th

Hartford Courant Article

Rachel was chosen as the spotlight athlete this week. Here is the link to the article. Nicely done Rachel!

The Rest of the Week

Today- Try to get 2-4 miles in. Right now the snow isn't bad but it will pick up by this afternoon. If you have access to a treadmill or a gym, great. If you can't get outside try to do some stretching or yoga or something. Just have to flush out your legs from yesterday's workout.

Thursday-EASY run and strides. We will practice handoffs and those jumping can practice jumping instead of running.

Friday- The consensus was that we would have practice at 9:30 and meet on the track. I will clear a section off so we can practice handoffs. We will be doing virtually nothing. Please dress appropriately since we will still do our visualization exercise but it will have to be outside. I believe Jill said she is going to wear her snow suit so that is something to look forward to. I do not want to hear complaints about it being cold/snowy/uncomfortable. You have enough time to prepare yourself for the conditions and I want to have a good practice before our meet.

Saturday- State LL Class Meet. The meet will start at 10:00AM and our bus leaves at 7:30AM. Plan on arriving at school no later than 7:20. The meet should go by fairly quickly since there is another class meet that begins at 4:00pm and I am sure they would want to clear the place out before all the other teams arrive.

Sunday- Everyone off

We have the potential to do very well at this meet. Everyone has put in the work, we just need to focus and prepare mentally. We will determine a practice schedule for next week for those who qualify for the State Open. The State Open takes place the following Saturday. For parents interested in attending either meets, they will take place at the New Haven Field House. I hope everyone is enjoying their snow day. Take this time to relax and get yourself ready for Saturday.

SCC Times/Feedback

4x800m Relay 3rd 10:08.47

Jenna-2:35.72 Came through big for us when we needed you. This is a great time and you impressed me.

Amanda- 2:41.30 You seem to be stuck on 2:41. Focus yourself, you will run sub 2:40. You have the ability, you just need to believe that you can do it.

Sarah- 2:30.17 Like Amanda, you're stuck on this time. I know you have the ability to go much faster. Believe in yourself and the work that you have put in.

Julie- 2:20.48 Huge split and a great PR. This was a great start to a great day for you. Lets start thinking sub 2:20.

55m
Ashia 7.54 Prelim 7.38 Final. Second place and a stunning performance. Well done!

Ally 8.35 You've been sick and it shows. Forget about it and get healthy for next week. You will only be running the 300m so focus all of your attention on that. You will do much better next week.

Carla- 8.47 Exactly the same as Ally. Can't run well when you're sick. Shake it off and focus on next week.

300m
Ally- 48.33 Focus on next week.

600m
Sarah- 1:41.62 This was a good race for you and you ran tough. Believe in what you have been doing and don't doubt yourself. You have the ability to run sub 1:40. Focus this week on that and stay positive.

Taylor- 1:49.44 Fantastic race for you and you dipped under the state qualifying mark. You have been working extremely hard the last couple weeks and I think you would agree that it shows. Nicely done.

Meghan- 1:54.48 Season best for you and a solid performance. Good job!

1000m
Julie- 1st Meet record 3:00.64. OUTSTANDING! This was a great performance and I am extremely impressed. Start thinking sub 3, you have the ability.

Tesni- 3:27.62 I felt this race went out a little slow but you finished hard and looked tough. Just missed the state qualifying mark but it was a great attempt. Nicely done.

Jenna- 3:27.67 Same as Tesni.

Hayley 3:43.36 I believe this is a season best for you. You've had various knee troubles and worked through it and finished your last race of the season nicely. Good job.

1600m
Kathleen 5:28.44 Great time for not having run this event. I think you looked solid and came through to pick up some points. Good job.

Julie 5:29.10 Unbelievable after running two extremely fast PRs. This was a great day for you!

3200m
Kathleen 11:57.72 Pr for you and a nice race. I still feel like you can go much faster. Focus and believe in what you have been doing. Good job.

Amanda-12:21.69 Only a couple seconds off your Pr. Good race for you. Refocus yourself and get ready for next week, I have a feeling it will be another breakthrough for you.

4x200m 1:52.82 These splits can be a little off since I had to stand so far away but they are in the ballpark
Jill 29.11 Great race from you. Your head was into this meet and I liked that
Casey 28.61 Great race, you always run tough and with heart, nicely done
Kylee 27.87 Solid performance, like Casey, you always give everything you have. Nice job.
Ashia 27.20 Fantastic split.

4x400m 3rd 4:16.11 This was definitely a highlight of the meet for us. Great race all around
Kylee 1:04.05 Solid performance
Taylor 1:06.80 Nice job but I feel like you have more in you.
Sarah 1:03.82 Great split after running two hard races, nicely done.
Casey 1:02.? Fantastic job, very impressive.

SMR 4:47.73 Qualified for States
Jill-28.78 Great time for you, nicely done.
Alisha-30.61 Solid split, you can go faster though.
Taylor- 1:06.98 Nice job
Meghan- 2:41.1 Came through big for the team when we needed you. Great time for you.

High Jump
Kylee 1st 5-02.00 Great job. You are extremely talented.

Pole Vault
Jen 8-06. Nicely done.
Sarah- 7-06. Not your day, it happens. Forget about it and come back strong for next week.

Long Jump
Alisha 14-04.75. Like Sarah, today wasn't your day. Forget it and concentrate on next week.

Shot
Rachel 44-11.25 1st and SCC Meet Record. Unbelievable performance. You beat your own record by 2ft. Nicely done.

Breslyn 30-01.5. I believe this is a best for you. Nicely done.

Again, great job to all of you. I am extremely proud of the work you have done and I think it shows. Time to gear up for the State Meets.

Well Done!

I just wanted to congratulate everyone for an outstanding performance last night. We finished 2nd in the SCC with a final score of Career 81 and Cheshire 73. The SCC is arguably the best conference in Ct and you all should be extremely proud of yourselves. I will put up times and feedback when I get a chance later this weekend but here are some highlights and some individuals that I would like to point out.

Rachel wins the Shot with a throw of 44-11.25 and beats her own meet record by 2ft.
(I do not look at rankings much, especially at the high school level, but I was curious where this stacks up against everyone else. Rachel is currently 4th in the entire country in the Shot, congratulations!)

Julie splits a 2:20 and change in the 4x800 which finished 3rd overall. Comes back in the 1000m and runs a stunning 3:00.64 (I was also curious as to how fast this is compared to the rest of the country. Julie is currently ranked 39th in the entire country in this event. Fantastic performance). After two huge PRs, Julie ran an impressive 5:29.10 in the 1600m to pick up a few extra points for the team. I am extremely proud of your performances from last night.

I would also like to point out Jenna who came through big time in the 4x800 and split an impressive 2:35. You exceeded my expectations and I was very pleased with this. You came through for the team when they needed you, well done.

Kathleen ran an impressive 5:28.44 in the 1600m and picked up some much needed points. This was a great performance.

Taylor ran a tremendous race in the 600m and qualified for States. I was extremely pleased with this run, you looked great.

Meghan came through for the team big time in the SMR. She split an impressive 2:41 and helped the team when we needed her. We also qualified for States in this event, nicely done.

Our 4x400m Relay Team of Casey Kylee Taylor and Sarah ran a season best time and shaved off 6 seconds. You also came from behind to pass Career. You all ran your hearts out in this race and I was extremely pleased with this performance.

Kylee won the high jump with a jump of 5-02.00

Again, great job to everyone and I will post the remaining times/feedback when I get a chance later this weekend. As I said last night, run easy today 2-5 miles and take tomorrow off. If you are still a little sick, make sure you relax and get healthy. We still have more meets ahead of us with the State LL Meet next Saturday and for those who qualify, the State Open the following weekend. There is still work to be done so relax for a little bit and refocus come Monday. We will be doing one hard workout early in the week and then a little tune up mid week.

"I want to run..."

I hope everyone enjoyed the visualization exercise, though I am shocked that none of you knew the song. I recommend downloading it and playing it before your races. I am a firm believer in visualization and have been using it myself for many years. You can play the song here, but will have to download it whatever way you usually get music. I want everyone to think positively about your races. You all have been working extremely hard and are ready. It is now up to you. Rely on your training and stay focused and you will do great.

Entries for the SCC Championships

Here are the final entries for the SCC Championships on Friday. I entered 6 people in every relay so we are covered if anything comes up. The entries did not change from what was discussed at practice the other day so everyone should already be aware of what events/relays they are in.

RELAY EVENT TIMES:
==============================

======================

4 x 200: 1:52.5
4 x 400: 4:23.10
4 x 800: 10:06.29
Sp.Med.: 4:44.00
====================================================
INDIVIDUAL ENTRIES:
====================================================

A, Rachel

Event #1: Shot (Seed Mark: 42-07.25, 1/16/10 Yale)

A, Taylor

Event #1: 4x400 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: Sprint Medley (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #3: 600 Meters (Seed Mark: 1:50.30, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

B, Hayley

Event #1: 1000 Meters (Seed Mark: 3:47.20, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

B, Carla

Event #1: 55M Dash (Seed Mark: 8.20, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)
Event #2: 300 Meters (Seed Mark: 47.00, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

B, Alison

Event #1: 55M Dash (Seed Mark: 8.20, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)
Event #2: 300 Meters (Seed Mark: 47.00, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

C, Amanda

Event #1: 4x800 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 3200 Meters (Seed Mark: 12:19.5, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

C, Caitlyn

Event #1: 4x800 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: Sprint Medley (Seed Mark: N/A)

F, Meghan

Event #1: 4x400 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: Sprint Medley (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #3: 600 Meters (Seed Mark: 1:55.60, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

F, Sarah

Event #1: 4x800 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 4x400 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #3: 600 Meters (Seed Mark: 1:41.2, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

G, Courtney

Event #1: Sprint Medley (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 55M Dash (Seed Mark: 8.30, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)
Event #3: Long Jump (Seed Mark: 13-04.50, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

G, Breslyn

Event #1: Shot (Seed Mark: 29-00.00, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

H, Jenna

Event #1: 4x800 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 1000 Meters (Seed Mark: 3:26.50, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

H, Julie

Event #1: 4x800 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 1000 Meters (Seed Mark: 3:09.50, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)
Event #3: 1600 Meters (Seed Mark: 5:40.70, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

J, Jennifer

Event #1: Pole Vault (Seed Mark: 8-06.00, 1/09/10 Hartford Public)

J, Jillian

Event #1: 4x200 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: Sprint Medley (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #3: 55M Dash (Seed Mark: 8.30, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

K, Kathleen

Event #1: 4x800 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 1600 Meters (Seed Mark: 5:40.00, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)
Event #3: 3200 Meters (Seed Mark: 12:02.0, 12/22/09 Developmental 1)

M, Kylee

Event #1: 4x400 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 4x200 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #3: High Jump (Seed Mark: 5-02.00, 1/9/10 Hartford Public)

N, Casey

Event #1: 4x400 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 4x200 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #3: 300 Meters (Seed Mark: 44.04, 2/6/09 SCC Championships)

P, Tesni

Event #1: 1000 Meters (Seed Mark: 3:29.30, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

S, Sarah

Event #1: Pole Vault (Seed Mark: 8-06.00, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

W, Emily

Event #1: 55M Hurdles (Seed Mark: 10.97, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)
Event #2: 55M Dash (Seed Mark: 8.50, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)

W, Alisha

Event #1: 4x400 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: Sprint Medley (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #3: Long Jump (Seed Mark: 15-06.00, 1/12/09 Housatonic Championships)

W, Ashia

Event #1: 4x200 (Seed Mark: N/A)
Event #2: 55M Dash (Seed Mark: 7.30, 1/12/10 Housatonic Championships)