Hanley, Malatesta Set for Meet of Champions

The race last weekend was the final action of the season for many runners. For the boys and girls teams, two ninth place finishes marked an impressive end to the 2011 season.

That is, the end for all but two runners.

With top 10 finishes at the group championships, seniors Tara Hanley and Anthony Malatesta each earned invites to run at the Meet of Champions at Holmdel on Saturday.

Hanley, who this season became the first Chatham girls cross country runner to earn a Morris County title, followed up the county clincher with a second-place finish at the Group II championships, running a time of 18:36. Malatesta grabbed a seventh place finish in the boys race, running a time of 16:37.

Seeing both of these Chatham stars advance to the Meet of Champions for the second straight season shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, though, as the two seniors' drive and determination have been second to none.

"He’s just incredibly focused on his training,” boys head coach Pat Barry said of Anthony. "He trains harder than anybody, and the results prove that it works for him.”

Malatesta, who says a top 20 finish at the MOC is “the dream” and will be looking to break his personal best time of 16:38 at Holmdel, reflected on what’s gotten led him to success.

“I came from nothing,” he said. “Some of these other towns have middle school track programs, but Chatham doesn’t. I ran a small amount on my own, but coming into freshman year I didn’t have much [experience]. But I just went out and ran with the upperclassmen, worked hard every day and it’s finally paying off.”

That attitude, according to Barry, is infectious throughout the locker room.

"Some teammates try to emulate [his training], and while they don’t come close to doing what he does, they at least try," he said. "He’s a great role model for them to train hard."

For Hanley, who head coach Julie Ullmeyer described as “always at practice and always putting in the extra work,” the trick became controlling her preparation to avoid overtraining and injuries.

After a 2010 spring season littered with injuries, Hanley and her coaches needed to revise her training regiment, in an effort to sustain a successful senior campaign.

“[Being injured] changed my priorities,” Hanley explained. “It made me swallow my pride and understand that I’m not a machine. That I can’t too crazy about training, and that I have to give myself breaks.”

“My coaches have done a phenomenal job of making sure that I don’t burn out or peak too early,” she said. “I feel very much ready for the next couple of races.”

While both runners impressing on the track and off this season, a quality finish at the MOC would really be the icing on the cake. And both coaches are confident that their runners can get it done.

But this weekends race won’t mark the end of these season for these two runners, as Hanley gets set for the Nike Regional Meet in Upstate New York, while Malatesta will run at the Footlocker Regional in Rhode Island next weekend.

For Hanley, a top five finish next weekend will earn her an invite to the Nike National Meet in Oregon.