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New Yorkers come
ultra-close!
Dash demon Elzie Coleman (nursing a pulled
groin sustained in the trials!) and scintillating
Saratoga Springs' DMR each wind up with near-misses in pair of national-record
assaults!
Photos by Greg Armstrong
(left) and John Dye
Newburgh HS sprinter Elzie Coleman was
a mere .09 seconds short of matching
William Reed's prep undercover 300m record in the Stanner Games at the
Armory
on Saturday. On Friday, it was Saratoga Springs' distance medley relay
clocking
11:49.99 (#4 all-time) at the Yale Classic to come within .66 seconds
of breaking
Red Bank Regional's (NJ) national record! More chances to come in 2004!
Despite strained groin/compromised
training, New Yorker
Coleman nearly claims another of William Reed's records!
By Rich Gonzalez, DyeStatCal.com
--
"It must be the hallways -- there's something
there!"
That's the
light-hearted response Newburgh HS senior Elzie Coleman offered up when
asked to explain his rocket-like times over the last two weekends, that
despite horrid weather conditions having forced the New York area dasher
and his teammates to carry out their speedwork along building hallways.
But Coleman's most recent rush-for-our-record-book performance at the
Armory was only one portion of an a near-magical weekend on the national
indoor calendar, however, as Saratoga Springs' (NY) fathomed distance
program came tantalizingly close to the national indoor distance medley
relay record at the Yale Classic while Central Catholic's (OR) Galen Rupp
garnered the Friday-night spotlight during a much-anticipated men's open
mile sojourn in Arkansas.
Despite
the frigid temperatures snaring the Northeast, Coleman has been doing
nothing but scorching the track indoors, with last weekend's national
record 46.58 clocking at the Hispanic Games almost paralleled this weekend
by his 33.28 sizzler over 300 meters (#3 all-time prep indoors) at the
Stanner Games. Both meets came in the Armory.
Making
the most recent feat even more impressive was the fact it was achieved
while nursing a pulled groin, an ailment that surfaced during qualifying.
"I
felt it pull in the trials," said the soft-spoken 18-year-old. "Then
every time I came off the curve, I felt it."
Good
fortune was on his side, however, as Coleman was never seriously challenged
in the final, and carried no burden of pressure going in.
"He
had no one honestly to push him," Coleman's coach, Malcolm Burks,
said. "I had him at 20.5 easy at 200. He tightened a little at the
end, but he was fine. ... Beforehand, he asked me what he needed to do
to break the record. I told him not to worry about the record. Just go
out there and have fun, and let the record come eventually."
Such
encouragement has not gone unnoticed by Coleman: "That's a real big
help, keeping any pressure off. If I go out there to have fun, I'm sure
I'll be fine."
Coleman
returns to the scene of his most forgettable episode next weekend, when
he and his Newburgh teammates trek to the Armory for the New Balance Games,
a meet in which Coleman suffered a serious asthma attack last year.
"That
attack really set me back for a while," Coleman admitted. "After
that race, I always had fear. I was scared every time I went out there
for a 400 that it would happen again. ... Coach just told me I've got
to suck it up and go out there like a man, and that thinking has helped
me. I don't worry about it anymore."
Coleman
will run in the open 400 and the 4x400 relay at the Armory, seeking a
fun time and some good workouts leading up to it.
"We
had school cancelled Thursday and Friday," Coleman noted. "We've
been in halfways, and we can't get any real 400-meter workouts. Every
time we speed up, we have to slow down and make a turn."
Coleman,
as you can tell, isn't much into slowing down these days.
Saratoga Springs distance aces
continue full-throttle excellence
--
Was Saratoga Springs going for the national record?
"Our philosophy is, every time we step on the track we're
going for the record," said Saratoga Springs coach Linda Kranick.
"We're ready for the record right now."
They got one -- albeit a school record.
The Saratoga Springs crew toiled with rewriting the history books yet
again on Friday night, with sophomore All-American Nicole Blood's anchor-leg
tote of 4:51.8 on the 1600-meter segment bringing the quartet home in
a 11:49.99, leaving just 0.66 seconds -- barely enough time to clap one's
hands a single time -- between them and undisputed ownership of the 11:49.34
national record by Red Bank Regional of New Jersey in 2002.
The biggest nemesis on Friday was not the clock, but rather the setting.
Competing on a flat/slow track and not challenged by rivals during the
final stages, conditions were less than ideal for a record attempt. Even
so, Lindsey Ferguson's 3:37.8 opening-leg carry, frosh Alysha McElroy's
1:02.9 for the 400, and Ruby Solomon's high-2:17.5 split for the 800 put
the group into contention, with Blood then barreling down the final straight
just short of the record.
"Given everything, this was good for us," Kranick added. "Our
freshman (McElroy) is new to all this and she will come along fine. Everyone
is doing their part, which is what relays are about. We've got other good
chances for the records including the (Nike Indoor Classic in) Maryland.
That's a great meet for us."
With three team members now under 5:00 for the full mile, both the 4xmile
and distance medley relay records apper to be in serious trouble.
Coach Kranick also reported that 10 Saratoga Springs girls have already
dipped under 11 minutes for 3,000 meters this winter, a sensational show
of depth, even by the program's annual lofty standards. Blood also clocked
4:54.33 in the mile on Saturday, when the school also captured the 4x800
victory in 9:21.00.
Rupp says tuneup
for New Balance Games
revealed a mental overhaul is still needed
--
Don't waste your time telling Galen Rupp what he can or can't do. He's
sticking to his beliefs, clutching those convictions tighter than ever
now.
Rupp,
a standout senior at Central Catholic High in Oregon, was less than thrilled
with his third-place clocking in 4:10.95 at Friday's Arkansas Invitational,
the final dress rehearsal for next weekend's big two-mile challenge at
the New Balance Games at The Armory.
"I was definitely a little disappointed," Rupp revealed. "I
know a lot of people didn't think I could run 4:05, but I know I'm in
shape for it right now, but I let myself lose focus when I needed it most."
Rupp, whose confidence was partly rooted in another solid simulation workout
on a poor track only days earlier (4:14.0 for 1600, 4:12 pace over 1000,
2:03 for 800, and 1:28 for 600), expressed frustration at a blown chance,
but sees it as a lesson to learn from entering next weekend.
"(The pacing) all went well. I couldn't ask for better as we came
across at 3:05 with a lap to go. ... Then I let myself down, just lost
it completely," Rupp admitted. "That last lap comes down to
being mentally tough, but I let it get away from me. I'll need to keep
that focus next week, pumping the arms, staying strong, staying on target.
In the past, I'd stay back for about 1k, then kick the last 600 fast.
I think I underestimated exactly how tough it was to run 4:05. I've never
run that fast before, and this was a feeling I wasn't used to."
Better for Rupp's callousing experience to occur here, rather than at
New Balance.
"It was definitely good, something I needed. If I get the record,
that'd be awesome, but I'm primarily looking to run better than I have
before over 3000 meters (through 3200 meters)," quipped Rupp, discounting
any over-emphasis on the talk of a national record attempt (a converted
mark of 8:40.0 set in 1964 by Gerry Lindgren). "I'm in great shape.
I want to come across the halfway at 4:20 and looking to run about 8:45."
Rupp, who has been pointing to the New Balance meet ever since his runner-up
placing at the FootLocker Cross-Country Nationals, said he might run another
mile at the U-Dubb (University of Washington) Last Chance Meet after New
Balance, then take a complete two-week break from running.
"I'll be looking forward to getting some time to relax and just hang
out with friends," said Rupp. "A mental and physical break would
be good during that time."
Stanner Games, The Armory,
New York, Saturday - Results
- Elzie Coleman (Newburgh, NY)
33.28 in Boys' 300m (#3 all-time HS indoors)
- Hakon Devries (John Hay, NY)
2:29.00 in Boys' 1000m (meet record)
- Allison Kieffer (West Islip,
NY) 10:03.37 in Girls' 3000m (meet record)
- Ian Cassidy (Archbishop Molloy,
NY) 14-6 in Boys' PV (ties meet record)
- Ashley Haislip (Lake Braddock)
5-6 in Girls' HJ (ties own meet record)
- Corinna Hengin (Pine Plains)
11-6 in Girls' PV (meet record)
- Katlyn Fitzgerald (Mt. Sinai)
11-0 in Girls' PV (also surpassed previous meet record)
Yale Classic, Yale University,
New Haven (CT) Friday-Saturday - Results
- Saratoga Springs, NY - 11:49.99
in Girls' Distance Medley Relay (#4 all-time)
- Saratoga Springs, NY - 9:21.00
in Girls' 4x800m Relay (meet record)
- Shenendehowa, NJ - 10:36.25
in Boys' Distance Medley Relay
Arkansas Invitational, Tyson Center, Fayetteville
(AR) Friday-Saturday
Springco - Northern Arizona
Invitational - (Az) - Saturday
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