Tangibly, not a great deal carries over from one race to the next, and certainly not from one season to another. But confidence is another matter.
Caroline Timm of Our Lady of Lourdes takes first in the girls Class B race at the Section 1 Cross Country Championship at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls, November 5, 2016.
For a runner, with each success comes a greater belief that they can improve, that races can be run more efficiently. That times they never imagined themselves capable are within reach.
So Caroline Timm winning a bronze medal in the state track and field tournament in June doesn’t really translate to the fall, and the Our Lady of Lourdes High School junior claiming the Section 1 Class B title last week doesn’t mean a whole lot for Saturday’s cross country state championship in Chenango Forks — to her at least.
But, she said, “I feel pretty confident going into states due to the strong effort I put into training this season.”
That has manifested in results. Among her triumphs this autumn, Timm won the Northern Counties Championships, the Section 1 Coaches Invitational and the Bowdoin Park Classic. Last week, she completed the 3.1-mile course at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls in 18:44, nearly 30 seconds ahead of second place, to capture a Section 1 crown and earn a berth to the state tournament.
Timm will be among 34 local runners competing on Saturday at Chenango Valley State Park. The girls races begin at 9 a.m. and the boys at 11 a.m.
The Arlington High School boys cross country team poses together after winning the Section 1 Class A title at Bowdoin Park on Saturday.
Runners from teams that took first overall in each class in their respective sectional championships qualified for the state meet, as did the top five runners in each class of each section. Runners that took part in winning teams did not count toward the top five individual qualifiers.
“I want to do a lot better at the state meet than I previously have,” said Timm, who last year took 16th in the girls Class B race. “I’m aiming to come in top three this year … It’s been a good season so far.”
Lourdes’ Timm overcame heart ailment to return to states
John Jay’s Sean Murray won the boys Section 1 Class A title, running the Bowdoin Park course in 16:28. Arlington won the team championship in that circuit, so it’s team of seven qualified for the state championships: Matthew Dillon, Brendan Foley, Colin Waters, Joe Morrison, Michael Asselmeyer, Max Glazowski and Andrew Pfeifer.
Haldane won the boys Class D race and had the top four finishers in the race: Nicholas Farrell, Adam Silhavy, Ellis Osterfeld and Matthew Mikalsen. Jonas Petkus, Andrew Silhavy and Kyle Kisslinger also qualified for the Blue Devils.
Haldane won the Section 1 girls D title as well, and will send Shannon Ferri, Taylor Farrell, Heather Winne, Meghan Ferri and Ruby McEwen.
The male qualifiers from Section 9 were Jack Hobson (Red Hook) in Class B and Chris Estremera (Millbrook) in Class D.
Sarah Trainor will represent Franklin D. Roosevelt High School in the girls Class A race.
Pawling senior Katelyn Huggard took seventh in states last year and qualified again for the girls Class C. Beth Jenkins of Spackenkill, and Dover’s Lindsay Demers and Heaven Swan also will compete.
Taylor Edmundson took first in the Section 9 girls Class D race last week at Bear Mountain State Park, leading Webutuck to victory. Edmundson took eighth in states last year as a sophomore. She will be joined by teammates Abby Thomas, Sarah Meili, Abby Hoke and Julia Butts. Millbrook’s Kaitlyn Daly also qualified for the race.
Stephen Haynes: shaynes@poughkeepsiejournal.com, 845-437-4826, Twitter: @StephenHaynes4
State cross country meet
When: Saturday, with races beginning at 9 a.m.
Where: Chenango Valley State Park, Chenango Forks