Briana Gess running at the Penn Relays. / Photo by Chuck Martin for MileSplit
As part of the Future Stars series presented by Hoka One One, MileSplit is highlighting some of the top underclassmen cross country runners throughout the country. In this athlete spotlight, we feature Haddonfield Memorial High School (NJ) sophomore Briana Gess. As a freshman Briana won the New Jersey State Meet of Champions at historic Holmdel Park with a time of 17:45 for the 5K. During winter she played high school basketball before returning during the spring time to win the New Jersey Meet of Champions 1600 meter run in a time of 4:45.97. She ran the 1600 meter five times last spring, she is undefeated in the event and every race was under five minutes.
Interview with Haddonfield Memorial High School (NJ) sophomore Briana Gess
Hello Briana, I hope the summer was awesome. Thank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions for us. To catch up on things how was your summer training and how do you feel heading into the season? Any highlights from the summer months? Fun and or running wise?
This summer I went out west to California and Oregon for about a month with my family and I did all of my runs at altitude and uphill. During them I felt so out of shape but coming back to sea level and the flat roads and trails in south jersey I feel really strong and I'm really excited for this season!
Has the preparation for your sophomore year of cross country changed a great deal from how you were training heading into your freshmen season? If so, how?
Yes, my preparation has changed quite significantly. This is the first year that I actually followed a schedule given by my coach which definitely increased my mileage from freshman year.
You won the 2013 Cross Country Meet of Champions and the Group 2 individual titles as a freshman before heading out to Foot Locker Nationals where you placed an impressive 13th overall. What will be your major goals for this season individually?
My goals for this season are to improve my times on all of the course that I ran last year and if I decide to try footlocker again I hope to qualify and place better than last year.
Since cross country is awesome and all about that sense of teamwork, what about with your Haddonfield Memorial teammates? Go Dawgs!
My teammates are my best friends and that's what makes cross country so much fun. I look forward to practice every day after school and I love spending time with them. They are all so supportive and encouraging and we run for each other which is something that I think is really special. I also run with the boys and they're great too. I'm so lucky to have such great friends on both sides of the team.
Briana competing at the Manhattan Invitational's Varsity E race where she won with a time of 14:28.90! / Photo by Patty Morgan for MileSplit
So much success last fall and you made the decision to continue playing another sport you love, basketball, during the winter track season. Was that a hard decision to make? Did you continue to fit some kind of track training into your schedule? Lastly, how did you and your team do on the court?
Deciding to play basketball was not a hard decision because I figured that if I was going to play I might as well play freshman year. It was hard to fit in runs with games, basketball practice, and schoolwork but I found a way to run a couple of days a week. Sometimes I would go the weight room and lift and run on the treadmill before practice. Our team was really good and we all had so much fun playing together.
When we last saw you it was during the Meet of Champions and you had just crossed the 1600 meter finish line in first place with a sizzling personal best of 4:45.97, in fact you were on a hot streak throughout all of the state meets.
Do you think a break from the track during indoor helped keep you fresh mentally and or physically heading into that season? Do you know if you'll be running indoor track this year?
I think a break during the winter season absolutely helped me mentally because I tend to get really worked up before races and it's exhausting after a whole season. So with a break in the winter by the time spring came I was ready to race again. Physically, although my mileage wasn't as high as I had hoped to keep it, I think that the lateral movement and sprints in basketball helped me get faster on the track. I think this year I'm going to run winter track though but maybe not compete until it gets closer to states that way I can still take a mental break.
Briana Gess coming down the final stretch all alone at the 2013 NJ State MOCs. / Photo by Robert Kellert for MileSplit
Your family has a great history with athletics. How did you originally become involved with the sport and why?
Every weekend for as long as I can remember my parents would push me in a stroller through all kinds of weather while they ran road races all over the state. Finally at about 4 years old I was tired of sitting in a stroller and as stubborn as I was told my dad that I could run the entire race and I did. After that, I never got back into the stroller and I've loved running ever since.
Who are your biggest role models in track and field and or cross country?
I think my biggest role models in track and cross country are Jordan Hassay and Jenny Simpson because they are both so exciting to watch at the end of races and they inspire me to be the same way.
Do you have a favorite fellow New Jersey athlete that you look forward to competing against?
I'm excited to compete against all the girls again this year. They're all so nice and supportive and I've made some really good friends with girls from other teams.
A change of pace for this last question, you are all high school runners so academics are the focus. What is your favorite school subject and why?
My favorite subject is math because I actually really enjoy working through equations and finding a definite answer.
