Gensib Enjoys Trip to Nationals

Runners who compete in the 3200 are used to going a long way. This past weekend, Princeton High School junior Elyssa Gensib made it all the way to North Carolina.

Gensib qualified to participate in the New Balance Outdoor Nationals in the emerging elite division, which is for athletes who did not qualify for All-American athlete events. 

Gensib placed seventh in her North Carolina race with a time of 11:18.87.

"While I was excited to be there, I was a little disappointed with the way I ran," Gensib said.

She was well off the pace of 11:00.44 she ran in the 3200 at the New Jersey Meet of Champions in part because she was forced to change her race strategy.

In the 3200 final at the Group III finals and The Meet of Champions, Gensib elected to follow one of the top runners in the race, let her set the pace and stayed on her heels as long as she could.

"In this race, the strategy didn't work," Gensib said. "In the emerging elite, all of the runners had similar times to mine."

No one went out in front and established a fast pace.

"The first lap was a lot slower than I was used to," Gensib said. "I still should have finished better. I was trying. My legs just got so tired."

While not thrilled with her final race, Gensib was thrilled by the season led her to the New Balance Outdoor Nationals.

"I was definitely excited to be there," Gensib said.

So was Jo-Ann  Gensib, Elyssa's mom. The two took the train to North Carolina.

"The stadium and the whole event was amazing," Jo-Ann Gensib said. "It was nothing like she has seen before."

That's because this was only the second time Gensib has competed in a high school race outside of New Jersey. The other time was a cross country meet in New York.

"There were announcers, music and a big screen where they were showing the races," Gensib noted. "Never been involved with a meet like that before. It was pretty cool. It was definitely cool to see so many fast people in one race."

It was also cool for Gensib to know she had come so far -- both literally and figuratively -- to be a among the nation's best high school track standouts.