Performance: Lakeview's Maggie Farrell
September 22, 2016
Maggie Farrell
Battle Creek Lakeview senior – Cross Country
Among the most intriguing stories from the first month of cross country season is the significant improvement of Farrell, who finished 92nd as a sophomore and 97th last season at the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Cross Country Finals. On Friday, Farrell won the Spartan Invitational “Elite” race at Michigan State University with a time of 17:33 – 2½ minutes faster than her time at the event last year and nearly two minutes faster than her 2015 Finals time – to earn the Michigan National Guard “Performance of the Week.”
Farrell finished two seconds faster at MSU than Traverse City Central’s Sielle Kearney, who took fourth in LP Division 1 a year ago and who along with Hart’s Adelyn Ackley was in heavy pursuit until Farrell crossed the line first. Lakeview, which didn't make the Finals last season as a team, finished second at MSU to only Northville, which was fourth in Division 1 in 2015. Farrell has won all of her races this fall, opening this season by breaking Lakeview’s 5K record by 51 seconds with a time of 17:39. The 17:33 at MSU is her personal record; her fastest time just a year ago was 18:58. Farrell's cross country accomplishments are a continuation of a strong spring, when she set school records in track in the 1,600 (4:29.23) and 3,200 (10:57.37), placing sixth at the LP Division 1 Final in the former. She also was part of school record in the 3,200 relay.
A two-time captain of the cross country team and captain for track & field during the spring, Farrell excels in the classroom as well with a weighted grade-point average of 4.19. She serves as president of her school’s National Honor Society chapter and as her class’ vice president. She hopes to continue running for a Division I college program but is unsure where she'll attend; she's passionate about animals and loves cooking and baking, and is considering studying either animal or food science.
Coach Becky Pryor said: “Maggie is the type of runner who not only does what is asked of her, but what her body needs. In addition to running almost every day, Maggie also makes sure to take care of her body; she rolls out almost daily, adds in extra core and stretching and takes ice baths weekly. … You cannot have a better athlete on your team than Maggie; she truly loves to run and compete with her team. She has individual goals, but she also has big team goals. She views her team as her extended family, and when the team does well that is when she is most excited. She is always positive and excited to be with her team. Whatever she can do to support her team, she does.”
Performance Point: “That invite was really huge for me because this season has been kind of a breakout season for me,” Farrell said. “At least in cross country, I haven’t been able to compete with some of the best girls in the state. (And) that race was just huge for me to gain confidence, learn, and feel what it’s like to use racing strategies against the best girls in Michigan. Just figuring out how to race will be huge toward my state and end goals. That was one big thing, and it was really fun to be out there for me and see all the support I had, everything like that. It was a great experience.”
Building a champion: “My coach changed my training plan last indoor track season. That’s when I got serious about wanting to be one of the faster runners in the state and getting into a college of my choice for running. I adapted to a different training schedule, put a lot of time into it and did a lot of strengthening and core as well. I make sure I’m not too hard on myself, but I’m disciplined. I do core when I need to do core; I make sure to stretch because it’s best for me. … And our team is really pushing me because we’ve got a lot of good girls this year, and that’s helped a lot.”
No fluke: “I dropped a lot of time in track, but I wasn’t expecting to break 18 (minutes) my first (cross country) race. At first I thought it was a fluke thing; yeah, I’m really excited, but it’s going to die down. So yeah, I really surprised myself. I knew I’d be better, but (didn't know) to what extent. … I’m a lot more mentally confident. Last year I tended to fold under pressure; I wasn’t really in it mentally, and there was a lot of doubt. I guess you could say now I believe in myself.”
Joining the elite: “This past year, I knew I had the potential to improve a lot. But if you’d asked me last cross country season, it was my dream to just stay in the 18:50s. When I’d hear people ran in the 17s, I just looked at them like super heroes; that seemed physically impossible to me. It’s crazy to comprehend, to sit down and think about it. I’ve always looked up to the Michigan girls who are really fast. I go to a lot of indoor meets and I see how dedicated they are. Last year I looked up to them, I idolized them, and it was hard to think that (I) could’ve been there last year. Madison Troy (Grandville) … Rachel Bonner (Port Huron), Maddy Trevisan (Farmington), I just remember watching them and knowing what they had to do to get there and how dedicated they are and being really inspired – and hoping to one day be running next to them.”
Listen to Dad: “Every Sunday I go on my long run with my dad (Patrick Farrell). He’s big on form, and he shares with me a lot of wisdom on what my form is doing. He also tells me a lot about making sure I enjoy running, making sure I don’t drive myself crazy with it. He’s someone who wasn’t able to finish his high school season because of injuries, and he wants to make sure I embrace every race so if it comes to a point where something happens, I won’t be disappointed in myself. It’s just really great to be able to run with him. It reinforces what I love about running.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2016-17 school year, Second Half and the Michigan National Guard will recognize a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom or protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2016-17 honorees:
Sept. 15: Franki Strefling, Buchanan volleyball – Read
Sept. 8: Noah Jacobs, Corunna cross country – Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Maggie Farrell approaches the finish at the lead of the Elite race at the Spartan Invitational on Sept. 16. (Middle) Farrell moves toward the front of the pack during the 1,600 at this spring's Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals. (Top photo by RunMichigan.com/John Brabbs, middle by RunMichigan.com/Carter Sherline.)
Anderson Shows Way for Fenton Runners
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
October 10, 2018
The runners on the Fenton girls and boys cross country teams admired and respected coach Jesse Anderson before he placed 20th overall at the 2018 Boston Marathon.
But that performance definitely didn’t hurt his credibility.
“Like everyone else on the team, I was shocked and very proud when I heard the news,” Fenton senior Nolan Day said. “It’s so crazy to think that our coach that we see every day took 20th out of 30,000 in one of America’s most prestigious marathon races. We all feel very lucky to have him as a coach as it is, and this just adds to it.”
Anderson, who finished the marathon in 2 hours, 29 minutes and 19 seconds, is in his fourth year as coach at his alma mater. The 2008 graduate was a two-time all-state finisher and four-time MHSAA Finals qualifier for the Tigers. While he didn’t run competitively while attending University of Michigan, he wound up picking the sport back up on his own and competed in road races before making the jump to marathons in 2013.
“The (Fenton) position came open in 2015, and I was encouraged to apply for the spot because I was running a business in town and I had picked up competitive running at the time after college,” Anderson said. “I cared a lot about the program and wanted to have an impact at that level. It has surpassed my expectations.”
In his first three seasons, the Fenton boys have qualified twice for the Division 1 Finals (2015 and 2017), and the girls qualified in 2017. Both teams are projected to finish first in their regions by Athletic.net, although the boys hypothetical Regional meet sees the Tigers tying Highland Milford for first and just one point ahead of Walled Lake Central. On the girls side, junior Alexa Keiser – who earned all-state finishes in both of her first two seasons at Fenton – has a top time this fall that once again would put her on stage at Michigan International Speedway on Nov. 3.
Anderson gives a lot of the credit for the team’s success to his assistant coaches, Sue Larsen and Nathan Loersch.
“I couldn’t do what I do without those two,” he said.
He also said that both his experience as a high school runner and as a currently competitive runner are what he’s needed to be a complete coach.
“They kind of go hand in hand,” he said. “When I’m talking to the kids and communicating a workout, my experience as a runner in high school is more valuable, especially when it comes to racing tactics,” he said. “But training to be consistent over road races has really taught me about making consistent habits. I wouldn’t feel as complete as a coach without one or the other experience.”
While Anderson acknowledges training for marathons is different than training for 5Ks, he also points out that there are plenty of similarities, which his experiences make him uniquely qualified to see.
The mileage an athlete is running per week may be different, but he said the rhythm of that week – when to rest, what to work out – is very much the same. And, of course, he has a willing participant to test the effectiveness of his workouts – himself. That helps him communicate why his high school athletes are running what they’re running, and what it will do for them, something Anderson feels very strongly about.
His athletes appreciate all of the experience he brings to the table.
“As a person and a coach, we think very highly of him, and his decorated running resume backs his already trustworthy judgment and advice,” Day said. “Just when I think that I couldn’t have any more respect for him as a person and as a coach, his achievements keep on grabbing even more of my respect.
“When it comes to relating to his runners and understanding what they are going through, Coach Anderson’s skills are unparalleled. He knows the stretches and fixes for every injury, and knows how to push his runners to their highest potential while not being detrimental. For these reasons, among many others, I truly feel Coach Jesse Anderson is the best cross country coach in the state of Michigan.”
Of course, not all of Anderson’s lessons are taught from his successes. In 2013, he attempted for the first time to run the Boston Marathon and had to drop out. It’s the only race, Anderson said, he’s hasn’t finished.
“I didn’t prepare very well,” he said. “I was in the midst of starting up a business in town, and I had kept myself busy that weekend and drove out the day before. I didn’t drink enough water. I drank too much coffee. I made a lot of mistakes, and I use it as an example now for coaching.”
The 2013 race also served as a personal learning experience as Anderson prepared for the 2018 marathon, helping him to his biggest triumph at the site of what was previously his rare racing failure.
It was made more special by the group of Fenton runners he has been mentoring seeing that success.
“They’ve always been super supportive, and it was really heartwarming to have a bunch of people reach out to me,” he said. “I really try not to make too much out of it because a lot of circumstances went into being able to place that high, but I would like to think I was just trying to practice what I preach to the kids. This wasn’t the result of some Herculean effort. That said, it was pretty cool, and Boston is pretty recognizable to most people, so it was really cool to see the kids get excited about it.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Fenton coach Jesse Anderson is surrounded by his runners during their preseason camp at Sleeping Bear Dunes. (Middle) Anderson crosses the finish line 10th at the Aug. 25 Crim 10-mile run in Flint. (Top photo courtesy of Fenton cross country, middle by RunMichigan.com.)