Miller and Adams Race to All-American Honors
OSHKOSH, WIS., 5/26/07 - Mission accomplished. Keene State College’s Sarah Miller and Jennifer Adams earned All-America honors in all three events that they competed in at this week’s NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship held at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
The Owls completed the sweep on Saturday with Miller (800-meters) and Adams (5,000-meters) earning All-America honors with third-place finishes in their respective races. Adams also earned the honor with her fourth-place performance in the 10,000-meter event on Thursday.
“It was an awesome week, and today was the exclamation point,” said KSC Coach Peter Thomas.
Overall, Keene State tallied 17 points to tie for 14th place in the team scoring.
Miller, a senior from Walpole, New Hampshire, picked a perfect time to run the race of her life. Competing in the final race of her Owl track career, she placed third in the finals of the 800-meter event with a Keene State record time of 2:10.65.
“I was in lane nine, so I tried to use it to my advantage,” Miller said. “I was able to go out with the front pack. On the bell lap, I was able to get around some people and finish with a strong kick.”
Miller broke the record set by Breanne Lucey (2:11.70) in 2006. Heidi Porter, a junior from Wartburg (Iowa) College, won the race in a J. J. Keller Field record time of 2:09.49.
Adams, a junior from Saratoga Spring, New York, posted a personal best time of 16:58.66 with her third-place effort in the 5K. She attributes her All-America run to her change in breakfast selections. “I usually eat oatmeal, but Peter told me to try the French toast,” said Adams with a laugh. “I always listen to him.”
Still feeling tied from her 10K race, Adams said she didn’t want to let her parents down. “They came all the way from New York to see me run,” she said. “I didn’t want them to come all this way for nothing.”
Thomas said the key to the race came after five laps when the front-runners pulled away. “Jenn went with them and when the race strung out, she gradually started picking off runners,” he said. “She maintained her focus and got after it.”
“I saw Sarah’s race and that really inspired me,” said Adams. “We feed off of each other’s energy.”
It was the first time Adams has been able to return from the nationals with a pair of All-America awards. Last spring, she won All-America honors in the 10,000, but placed a disappointing 12th in the 5,000 race.
Shauneen Garrahan of Amherst College won the race with a time of 16:49.54.
A three-sport athlete at KSC who also played soccer and ran cross country, Miller finishes her track career with four All-America honors. She placed fifth in the event at the indoor nationals. As a junior, Miller was eighth in the 400 and also ran a leg on KSC’s national champion DMR team.
“I’m glad Peter talked me into running cross country and track,” Miller said. “It was all worth it.”
Adams returns to Keene with her fourth and fifth All-America certificate. In 2005-06, she earned All-America in cross country and indoor track (DMR) in addition to the spring 10K.
Keene State women track athletes are closing in on the male counterparts in the All-America sweepstakes. The Owl track All-America list now stands at 84 (51 men and 33 women).
