By Alex Frazier
The best time of the season to peak, of course, is at the end.
But how many athletes can do it?
Lindsay Rheiner can.
The Council Rock North senior peaked at just the right time to take home a gold medal at the PIAA Cross Country Championships.
A year ago she had a most disappointing end to her season. She had placed 10th in the state as a sophomore and was looking forward to moving up last year. However, she was sick at districts and finished 97th. Her time of 20:32 was nearly two minutes slower than her time at the SOL meet the week before when she finished second to Pennsbury’s Sara Sargent in 18:42.
“It was a rough year,” she said. “There was a lot of stress with college recruiting.”
This year she finished second in the National Conference behind Sargent once again with a time of 18:16. At districts, she dropped her time to 17:56, finishing third to Tory Gerlach of Pennridge and Katie Kinkead of C.B. East. But she did beat Sargent for the first time by two seconds.
“That was pretty exciting,” said Rheiner. “She’s such a great runner. My goal all season was to be up there with her.”
So now she was back to states.
Rheiner got little sleep the two nights before the big meet.
“I was thinking if I really did have a chance or not,” she said. “I really didn’t want to put that pressure on myself, so I told myself top five. I really just wanted to have fun and end it on a good note.”
A lot of people overlooked Rheiner as a serious contender. After all, she wasn’t at states last year, she doesn’t run track and she didn’t finish indoor last year because she tore ligaments in her ankle.
A lot of people also forgot or didn’t even know that as a freshman Rheiner played lacrosse and also ran track. She clocked a 2:15 split on the 4x800 relay.
“Without too many workouts, she came off the lacrosse field and did that,” said Rock North coach Cliff Robbins. “People were looking beyond her at a few other kids that were probably a little more obvious.”
So Rheiner’s strategy at the state meet was to hang behind the lead pack by 5-10 seconds at the mile and see what developed. She didn’t want to push the pace too much so she had energy for the coming hills.
She caught up to Gerlach about the halfway mark.
“We were side by side talking to each other,” said Rheiner.
Also in the picture was Pottsville freshman Paige Stoner, who had run the same time as Rheiner in the first mile.
Stoner took advantage of a downhill to run a second faster than Rheiner in the second mile.
In the back of her mind, Rheiner knew if it came to a sprint at the end, she would be right there.
The two battled for the rest of the race as Gerlach fell back.
And true to her strategy, it was in the last 200 meters that she kicked ahead of Stoner and finished six seconds ahead of her.
“I got her up the hill, and then on the homestretch I knew I had it,” said Rheiner. “I don’t know why it’s always there, but no matter if I’m dying or not, I seem to have the kick.”
Voila! State champion.
“If someone were to tell me I would be a state champ by the end of my career, I wouldn’t have believed it,” she said. “I’m ecstatic. I can’t get over it.”
As important as her individual title was the fact that her team qualified for states and finished sixth just three points from fifth.
“If someone were to tell me we made it as a team to states, I wouldn’t even believe that because of how many seniors we lost from last year and how many freshmen and underclassmen we had step up,” Rheiner said. “It wasn’t just an individual effort. It was the whole team that got us there.”
After winning a state title, the college offers should come rolling in.
Unfortunately, she’s already committed.
Last July she signed with the United States Naval Academy.
Not for cross country, but for lacrosse.
It’s the rare athlete that can climb to the top of one sport let alone two.
Ironically, it was during the state cross country meet that she missed last year that she went to a lacrosse tournament in Annapolis.
“I fell in love,” she said. “Everything happens for a reason.”
Rheiner said she had no military background in her family.
“I fell in love with the team,” she said. “The coaches were incredible. I did a camp there that simulated midshipman life. I loved the camaraderie of everyone there.
“All that toughness I kind of live for. After thinking hard from November of last year until July, I figured out it was the right thing for me. I’m very excited.”
It was no surprise to Robbins that Rheiner chose a military academy. She takes the initiative, is mature for her age and is a natural leader.
“We came back from states, and she just automatically swept the van herself,” he said. “She knew it had to be done.”
At summer practices, Rheiner offered to wait until all the parents picked up the girls.
“She automatically thinks like an adult and does that kind of stuff,” said Robbins
Rheiner is considering oceanography as a major.
“I’ve heard great stuff about it,” she said. “They have facilities that are just incredible.”
As far as her Navy career, she’s thinking of becoming a surface warfare officer.
“She thinks like an officer,” said Robbins. “You don’t always see that in kids her age.”
Robbins noted that Rheiner is a well-rounded person, who, besides cross country and lacrosse, loves to fish, ski and snow board. She also scored 1200s in her college boards.
Rheiner plans on running the Foot Locker Regional Championship on Nov. 27 and perhaps nationals in San Diego if she finishes in the top 10.
“I had no plans originally, but after states I kind of figured things out if I wanted to continue or not, but I’m going to train for it,” she said. “I couldn’t be more happy at this point.”
And just maybe her kick will come through again.
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