Mariah Browne Taking a Jump at History

Mariah Browne says the ankle is healed. If anything is going to slow her down now as she tries to defend her state title in the long jump, it's probably going to be all that food she's been eating on the banquet circuit.

"Most definitely," Browne laughed about probably going off her usual eating habits. "I don't know. It was a lot of pasta. A lot of carbs, I guess."

This is one of the drawbacks if you're Mariah Browne, a senior at South Brunswick High School. She is the defending state champ in the long jump. She is heading to Harvard University in the fall. People are going to want to shake her hand, pat her on the back and give her something to eat.

"Honestly, it's been fun," Browne noted.

Browne was at the Pines Manor in Edison on Monday for a banquet honoring the top scholar/athletes in the Greater Middlesex Conference. On Tuesday, the South Brunswick High School track team held its own banquet.

No details on what Browne is doing on June 8. Being at Old Bridge High School on June 9, on the other hand, has been the goal all season. That's the date and location of The Meet of Champions. This is Browne's chance to end her South Brunswick career as a two-time state champ.

"I just want to end my season well," Browne said. "I don't know what's coming. I just want to surprise a lot of people."

Kind of the way she has always surprised people --  including herself.

For someone so successful, Browne is relatively new to the sport of track. Her parents suggested she give track a try at Crossroads Middle School.

Because she was fast, Browne assumed she would be a sprinter. Surprise!

"Once I tried jumps, I fell in love with it," Browne noted. "The coaches also saw some potential."

In her freshman year, Browne continued to learn the finer points of her sport. She struggled and failed to make it out of Central Jersey Group IV meet.

"In my sophomore year, I was second at The Meet of Champions," Browne noted. "That was both bitter and sweet. It was bitter because I was so close to winning. It was sweet because I knew I had two more years."

What haunted Browne the most about the second-place finish was the fact she was leading for most of the competition. Last year, Browne was the one who won The Meet of Champions with her last jump.

"Oh, the irony," Browne laughed.

"I really wanted to win (The Meet of Champions) last year. From the beginning to the end, that's all I wanted."

Browne started this year as the heavy favorite to win the state title again. She also started the year off with great news, learning she was expected to attend Harvard University.

"Knowing you've been accepted at Harvard is the best feeling ever," Browne said. "It was surreal for a while."

Unfortunately, Browne's ecstasy turned into agony for a while when she suffered a severe ankle sprain in the first month of the spring season.

"That was so frustrating," Browne said. "In the long jump, the landing was so painful. For a while. I also couldn't run full speed."

The ankle sprain also cost her a lot of valuable training time. For that reason, she wasn't winning every meet. People were starting to forget about her.

"I feel like everyone counted me out," Browne said. "I had a bad sectional meet. I was fourth. Everyone was like, 'She's done.'

"Then, this past weekend, I won (the long jump at the Group IV meet)."

Surprise! Browne is back.

"It was the biggest surprise," Browne said. "It was the turning point of my season."

Now, Browne believes her ankle is at about 95 percent. She's ready to repeat as the state champ. Not even the best banquet food in the world is going to be tempting enough to slow her down.