I know you and your team are at the Radix Running Camp this week. What have been some of the highlights of the week at Radix? What do you enjoy the most about this camp?
There were many great things about Radix this year, but I think the best was getting to work out and run with some new people because you learn a lot talking to other people who aren't on your team or are older than you. What I most enjoy about Radix is the bond it creates on the team, and that's really why we do it every year. It brings our team much closer together, which boosts performance because now we're not just running for ourselves. You're running for your team.
How important is it for a team to go to camp together, train together, and bond together? How much does that help in your preparation for the upcoming season?
As I said in the last question, I think this is extremely important because it creates such a togetherness that my race isn't just what I'm thinking about in races. It's how the teams are doing and if I can do anything more to help us win. I think everyone else on the team could say the same thing about this time that allows us to bond together and causes them to not really think about just themselves but the team as well. This is critical for a team to be good during the season because then they're not racing as one but as individuals.
.png)
Every runner who toes the line wearing a CBA singlet knows all about the streak? What does the national record dual meet winning streak, which will hit 400 this season, mean to you, and what are your thoughts on the responsibility and importance for your team to keep the streak alive and carry on the great tradition at CBA this season?
After running 15:21 at Holmdel, 12:13 at Vanny, and 15:50 at Bowdoin last year, what goals do you have for yourself this season? What times would you like to hit at Holmdel, Bowdoin, OCP, and Vanny this season?
With the outcome of last track season, how I've been feeling so far this summer, and with the help of Coach McCaffrey and Coach Lunny, I don't think sub 15, sub 12, and sub 15:30 are as crazy as they may seem.
The greatest course record in N.J. is the 14:53 at Holmdel Park. What are your chances of possibly getting under 15 at Holmdel and making a run at that record? You certainly have the talent and drive to drop something crazy at Holmdel.
I think if it's the right day, both are entirely possible because I think last year I definitely had some more in me to go faster at Holmdel. This year, it just comes down to how badly I want it because the sky is the limit. And especially with the help of great runners like Luke Pash (Ridgewood) to push, I don't think the record is that safe.
Your team returns a lot of firepower from a squad that smashed several course records, including the eye-popping 15:51 at Holmdel, and won Meet of Champions, Nike NE, and was 6th at NXN. Could this team be even better than your team was last year? How much potential do you see with this pack, and how excited are you for this season?
I know we can be better than last year. The team we put up this year can be the greatest N.J. of all time. Everybody needs to play their part, and it will happen. People might think that we lost 4 seniors in our top 7 and that we won't be close to what we were last year, but they don't know who is replacing them has the potential to be even better. The 3 key guys replacing them are Luke Hnatt, a junior now who didn't make the top 7 last year but ran 9:10 this spring, Gavin Schmitt, a sophomore now who previous year ran 16:27 at Holmdel and has insane potential, and Ryan Schmitt, who ran 16:26 at Holmdel who is ready to roll this season. With this stacked team, I don't see why we can't have 5 guys under 15:50 at Holmdel this year.
_(1).png)
You are coming off an amazing junior year on the track with P.R.'s of 4:09.67 for the mile and a state record of 8:43.26 for 3,200. What was the key for you to drop your times so much on the track? What was the most significant difference in your training? The way you raced and your mindset enabled you to make such huge drops.
The key to my dropping so much time was my mindset. Don't get me wrong, training played a huge part. Coach McCaffrey and Coach Lunny's workouts were crucial to how I ran and definitely made me confident that I could run what I ran. Still, I think the role mindset played was even more important because after a good indoor season, I knew I belonged on any start line of the fastest high school meets. Once I realized that, it allowed me to calm down and relax before my races and not be scared of anyone I was racing against, which really helped at Arcadia with such big names in high school running toeing the line next to me.
What is the story behind how you became a runner? When did you first start running, and how did it come about?
I was a competitive swimmer and played club hockey starting at age five. I continued doing this until 8th grade. I first started running in 6th grade for our town cross county rec. program. Some days I would run, swim, and play hockey all in the same day. I started doing well in our cross-country league meets. My coach, Kim Snarr, who runs the program, kept encouraging me to keep up with it. She is the one who really got me into running and made me truly love running. When I began at CBA, I decided to just focus on cross country and track.
When was your first big breakthrough? When did you realize that you could do big things in this sport?
The first time I realized I should start focusing more on running was in 7th grade cross-country. It was my first season, and Coach Kim (Snarr) told me I should do a post season and run the USATF middle school state meet. I decided to do it, and ended up going on to nationals after that. I think that's when I first realized I might not be swimming in high school and college like all my other siblings have done. Without my early base of swimming and hockey, though, I would never be where I am today, so I am grateful I played those sports when I was younger.
What do you love the most about being a runner, and what do you love the most about running in N.J.?
My favorite part of running is running with my friends because it makes it so much better. I love running just the act of it, but it can sometimes be the last thing I want to do. Running with my friends can make a time when I don't want to run so fun. What I specifically love about N.J. running is the community is just amazing. Everyone is just so supportive, and it's so close. For example, I know 70% of the officials at meetings just from seeing and talking to them at every meeting. Also, all the runners in N.J. are so friendly, which makes competing against them at meets even more fun.
What about UNC made you decide that it was the best fit for you, and how excited are you to be a Tar Heel? Where else did you take official visits?
I had three key things I would look for when I took all my visits. I looked for if the team was as close and pushed each other to be better as we at CBA do if the coach truly cared about each and every athlete even if something happened like they got hurt and couldn't run, and if the school was a place where I could see myself really enjoying even if I got injured and couldn't ever run again. UNC checked off these boxes thoroughly and has also had such an upward growth since Coach Milt (Chris Miltenberg) took over the program (in 2019) that I knew it was where I wanted to go to school. Villanova, Wake Forest, Stanford, and Notre Dame were the other schools I visited. This was possibly the hardest decision of my life as all of these schools were terrific, but when I visited UNC, I almost instantly knew it was where I wanted to be as it felt like I was home when I talked to the team and coaches.
.png)