Sports
Berger State Finalist: Tarrytown-Sleepy Hollow Daily Sports Digest, March 7
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Welcome to Patch's daily snapshot of sports in Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow.
Berger Excels at States
The below is from the Sleepy Hollow High School Athletic Department website:
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Congratulations to Sleepy Hollow’s FINEST athlete, Gillian Berger! Gillian is the runner up NYS Champion in the triple jump!!!! Gillian placed 2nd for all the public schools in NY State and 3rd in the federation, which includes all private schools.
Gillian is the 17th fastest 55 meter sprinter and the 15th best long jumper in the state! Congratulations, Gillian on your outstanding performance and for representing Sleepy Hollow athletes!
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One on One
The Daily Sports Digest went on one one with Berger. We thank her for taking the time to answer the below questions and congratulate her on an incredible season this winter.
Athlete: Gillian Berger
School: Sleepy Hollow
Class: Senior
Sport: Track & Field
1. What did it mean to you to accomplish what you did at the states?
A. It meant so much to me to accomplish what I did at the state meet. It's been a goal of mine for a few years now to even qualify to go to states, so I was completely satisfied with just qualifying in my three events. I was so happy to have the opportunity just to go to the meet, regardless of the outcome, which made placing in the top three even more exciting.
I didn't expect much going into it and my coach and I were just looking to make the finals for triple jump. Once I made finals, we set a goal for me to jump 37 feet, and hoped that I would be able to get ahead of two girls to place top six. Going into my final jump, all I could picture was standing on that podium receiving a medal. Placing top three by far exceeded my expectations and finally gave me the reward that I've always worked for.
2. Why were you able to you to accomplish what you did at the states?
A. I was able to accomplish what I did primarily because of my coach, Lisa King. I would not be in this position without her. If it weren't for Mrs. King, I wouldn't have ever started jumping in the first place.
She's the one that has taught me absolutely everything I know, the one that's practiced with me every day, the one that brings me to meets and supports me through it all. I have this weird thing where I don't perform my best unless I know she's right there on the infield of the track with me.
She's made me confident and strong; since she has never given up on me, I've never given up on myself. I also don't let competition get the best of me. I actually perform the best when I'm under pressure, which is why my final jump is usually my best jump. My placement in the state meet was completely dependent on my last jump and since I knew the pressure was on and it was all or nothing, I was able to pull it off.
3. Are you running spring track and if so what are you looking to accomplish during that season?
A. Yes, I will be running spring track this year and I'm looking to accomplish a lot during the spring season. My bar is now raised pretty high!
My first goal is to break my personal records in all three of my events, which is no small task. I'm looking to jump 38 feet in triple and in the high 17 foot range in the long jump.
I'd also like to run consistent low 12 second 100 meter dashes. I'd also love to go back to some of the big meets that we went to last spring, like the Loucks Games, and place higher than I did last year.
The ultimate goal of the spring season is to make another trip to the state meet. The standards for spring are more difficult to attain than the standards for indoor, so hopefully I'll be able to pull it off.
4. Have you decided where you want to go to college and if so are you running track there too?
A. Next year I'll be going to the University of Pennsylvania and yes, I will be running and jumping for the Quakers. I can't wait!
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