Reflections on seniors, part two

This is the second of two parts on the B-CC track team coaches' reflections on their senior class members. This post highlights the girls team.

Girls team:

Paige Donnelly, captain

Chad Young: ``On the team four years, obviously she’s a great leader. Seniors as a whole have a great core of leadership, and there are a few people like Paige who have been on the team a long period of time and they are able to communicate to others what they have learned and that has made my job easy as coach. She was able to lay back as a freshman and sophomore and didn’t have to dominate the field. The last two seasons she has run extremely well to get to a state championship. But what has been really impressive is her leadership, especially this year. She has done more than she has to. Sometimes she gets a little out of her comfort zone, but recognizes it will mean a lot to the team, all on her own. It’s an accumulation of smaller things, leading a group run, or talking to some of the younger runners, that goes above and beyond what she has done in the past.’’

Nathan Herchenroeder: ``She’s served a great purpose with the young sophomores on the team this year. Most of the top girls on the team now are sophomores, and they definitely wouldn’t be there right now if it wasn’t for Paige.’’

Nia Harrington

NH: ``She is new to the team this year. She’s from a strong program in Oregon, and I think she really brought a lot of knowledge to a really young team in general. She brought that knowledge of success they had – her team had won a state championship in Oregon. She has a lot of technical knowledge, lot of running knowledge, skill knowledge, and a lot of great leadership to young sprinting team. She definitely wants to see good things come out of this season for her and her teammates.’’

Kate Leuba, captain

CY: ``She had a couple of great experiences with her running over the past few years. She was on the 4 x 400 team that went to the states. She has had a tough time in the last year or so with injuries. But she is fully committed to the team, she loves track, loves everything about it, dying to be a meaningful contributor to the team. She is so determined she is still scoring points in every outdoor meet. Physically, emotionally, and mentally, she’s extremely strong. She’s kind of our social leader to the team. She organized our T-shirt order, got people’s names on back of shirts, and that was a great way to bring the team together.

NH: ``It’s like Kate Leuba won’t be leaving the team next year, because her little sister Caroline is exactly like her.’’

Rachel Meltzer

CY: ``She ran cross country before, she joined track, and decided she wanted to throw shot put and discus. She has been very determined to continue to improve. As a senior her attitude has been extremely positive, and she has done a good job with some of the younger girls, helping orient them and helping them get settled.’’

Darcy O’Connor

CY: ``She is a distance runner and has improved a lot. She is more quiet, especially with the coaches. She organizes the runs with the girls, and a lot of the girls feel really comfortable talking with her. She is also very encouraging to them as well. I think her role on the team is so important for the way she deals with all the girls and helps me manage things.’’