Norristown Girls Take State by Storm

Getting hit by a car while riding a bike as an election day '09 volunteer? Being a passenger in a vehicle and getting sideswiped? Having a tree fall on the car because you were unfortunately parked in the wrong place? These scenarios would be challenging to overcome for anyone. Norristown's Ciara Heath somehow endured them all.

Heath, whose name is ironically close to "Health," has endured a painfully eventful 18 months, but the Eagles senior track sprinter's long recovery and return culminated in the ultimate win last weekend at the 2011 PIAA Track and Field Championships.

Rowanna Watson, Alexis Bell, Heath and anchor Zayna Milligan took gold in the 4x100-meter relay at the Pennsylvania State Championship, breaking a nearly 20-year-old school record and capping a victorious outdoor season that also included a District One Class AAA Championship.

"I was ready to cry," she said. "I wasn't sure if I was going to recover fast enough to compete. All my hard work paid off. Now, I'm graduating and have a school record behind me and a state championship."

Or, as Norristown track coach Miles Burrell said, "It's one of those stories that, later on, they'll write a book about her."

Of the three car accidents, the one that occurred Nov. 3, 2009 was the most serious. Politically curious, Heath was excited to help out on election day despite being months away from being able to legally vote. As she waited to cross the street, a driver ran a stop sign and plowed into her.

She flew off her bike and landed hard on the pavement, sustaining a hairline fracture in her jaw, and injuries to her legs and ribs. She needed crutches for months. Her junior season of running track was over.

"I couldn't walk on it for weeks," she said. "It was very hard for me. I've been running all my life and now had to go through the therapy. It was boring, but I knew I had to get better."

Attending two-hour sessions, four days a week, with an extra hour on Tuesdays, Heath recovered enough to return for one indoor meet of her senior season. Knowing she had one more year of high school left was the dangling carrot she needed.

"It motivated me a lot because I didn't think I was going to be able to run again," she said. "As soon as they told me I could run, I trained harder than ever. I was going to make sure we got to states."

The 4x100 quartet made it look easy a year after dropping the baton at districts last season and failing to qualify.  Heath wouldn't settle for anything less than a state championship.

"She's so passionate," Burrell said. "We had an incident on the bus early in the season where she tore into her teammates. She reminded them that they had to work hard and be dedicated. It was almost a 15-minute speech on what they needed to do and how they were going to do it."

They provided a glimpse of their determination at the Penn Relays, when they won their heat of the High School Girls Large School 4x100 at 48.32, then finished seventh in the finals at 48.60. They also won the Relays' Tri-State Championship with a time of 48.24.

At states, Watson hung in second place as the leadoff leg, and Bell maintained that pace. Heath took over the lead and handed to Milligan, who brought home the win with their school-record time of 47.13.

"That's one of the best feelings besides having them go to college, is the opportunity to be on a state championship team," Burrell said. "No matter what they do in their lives, they'll always have that. They were hungry and they're the best in the state."

Heath will stay hungry in the fall, when she'll continue running at Neumann University, in Aston, Pa. Though her ordeal, she never felt sorry for herself.

"I feel very fortunate to have won with everything that happened," she said. "I feel much stronger physically and mentally. I know that you can never give up no matter what."