REEDSVILLE — Runners love setting personal records, striving to do that each time out.
It just so happens for Reedsville senior track and field athlete Allena O’Connell, her PRs are Panther program records and she’s consistently broken them every time she’s hit the track.
Reedsville coach Trent Scott says O’Connell, who owns the records in the 800-, 1,600- and 3,200-meters, has broken at least one school record at every single meet through May 14.
O’Connell loves being able to continually raise the bar.
“Its super exciting to keep on improving,” O’Connell said.
Scott saw a noticeable difference in O’Connell at the end of last season when she first broke the school records in the 1,600 and 3,200.
“Beginning of last year she was running really well, then all of a sudden, end of the year kind of stepped it up,” Scott said. “When she came into this season she was kinda further along than what she was at the end of last season. Each race she’s gotten better.”
O’Connell credits her offseason work, including effectively practicing for two different sports at the same time in the winter.
“I did a lot of winter training,” O’Connell said. “I did basketball but I also did running for track. I’d go to basketball practice and run after to help a lot.”
A state-qualifying cross country runner, O’Connell says she used the fall as a springboard for the, well, spring.
“I improved a lot in cross country,” O’Connell said. “My form got a lot smoother and has helped bring my times down a lot.”
Already a talented runner, O’Connell has shaved off seconds each race because of that attention to the little details says Scott.
“We struggled with a couple little things, nothing major, but this year she’s really taken her form up a level,” O’Connell said. “She fixed those little thing that made her stride better and smooth through the turns.”
It also helps the senior has begun to trust in herself more than when she was younger, knowing she has the talent to succeed.
“Gaining confidence in races and being aggressive,” O’Connell said was the biggest difference.
The goal is to reach state and compete for a medal, but O’Connell knows the only person standing in her way could be herself.
“Focus on myself and not the competition,” O’Connell said was the key. “Everyone is running their own race and I can only focus on what I do out there.”
So far, all O’Connell has done this season is break records, so it’s safe to assume that will continue to be the case heading into regionals on Tuesday, May 26.
Contact Tom Dombeck at 920-686-2965 or tdombeck@htrnews.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Tom_Dombeck.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: All Reedsville’s Allena O’Connell knows how to do is break track records
Reporting by Tom Dombeck, Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter / Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
