Granville's Micaela DeGenero - Building Her Confidence to be Fearless!

Personal Records

• 800m (in) - 2:13.97
• 800m - 2:15.08
• 1500m (in) - 4:30.60
• 1600m (in) - 4:54.50
• 1600m - 4:54.12
• 1 Mile (in) - 4:47.96
• 3200m - 11:28.95
• 5K (xc) - 18:20.00

Micaela, Thank you for the opportunity to talk with you about your High School career.  First, congratulations on a great run at the NBNI's Mile.  You won your section running a negative split 2:28, 2:21 to finish in a time of 4:47.96.  That is an Ohio Indoor All-Time #1 Mile and an All-Time Indoor (converted) 1,600m of 4:46.29.  It also places you All-Time Ohio #4 in the 1,600.  This places you in some elite company.  Emily Infield of Beaumont holds the 1,600 All-Time record with a 4:41.37 that she ran in 2007. She was 3rd last summer in the 10K at the IAAF Track World Championships in Beijing. Stephanie Morgan of Barnesville ran 4:45.21 in 2009 and Bridget Franek of Crestwood ran 4:45.68 in 2006. Franek was an Olympic Steeple Chase finalist and holds an American Women's Steeple Chase Record. (*Note:  Anne Henderson of Broadview - Brecksville Hts. ran a 4:43.5 Mile (4:41.86c) in 1978 and is listed in an All-Time Ohio list as #1.)

What were your expectations going into the NBNI race?  Were you surprised by your time?  Can you take us through that race - 1^st 400, 800, 1,200 and the last 200. 

This was my first time competing in an individual event at the national level, so I was pretty excited just to have qualified. I had a hard time choosing between the mile and the 800. Ultimately, I decided my goal was to compete and to see how high I could place, with the expectation that a fast time would come along with that, and that the mile was the best choice in terms of how well I could place. Going into the race, I didn't know anyone in my section and could only guess at what they were capable of running. My plan was just to sit on the pack, relax and hang on through the middle portion of the race, and then kick and try my best to win. I think the race went pretty well to plan, it got out quick and I bumped around a little bit in the beginning, but got settled in the pack and came through the half at around 2:26.

I usually struggle during the second and third quarters, but as a kicker, I knew that I only had to make it to 400 to go and I would be okay. Being in a race with so many talented competitors, I got dragged along through this part of the race before I could really think about how I felt. Coming into the 1200, I felt good, so I moved to the lead.

DeGenero moved to the lead with 400m to go.  

200m to go.

The final 200, I began to doubt myself and lost a little confidence, making the mistake of giving up the lead and allowing two girls around me. But, I realized pretty quickly that I was just as capable of competing up front as anyone else in the race and made another surge with about 100 meters left. The energy in the Armory is incredible, and the last 100, down to the final lean, was all on adrenaline. I wasn't entirely shocked by the time, I knew I was capable of right around 4:50 or a little under if everything went well, but I was more focused on place than time. I didn't expect to go as far under 4:50 as I did, but I knew from workouts and other races that I was ready to run fast, given the right race.

DeGenero on the left, out leans Jr. Rachel McArthur of Patriot HS in Nokesville, VA. to win Section 2 of the girl's Mile at the NBNI.  Jr. Cami Davre of Whitefish Bay, WI was 3rd in the Section.  Both McArthur and Davre passed DeGenero with under 100m to go and DeGenero came back to win.

You have had an interesting High School career.  In XC you have gone to State all four years, running 46^th in 2012 (19:42.33), 45^th in 2013 (19:52.00), 6^th in D2 in 2014 (18:45.71) and 45^th in 2015 (18:58.00).  This is somewhat lackluster in comparison to your record on the track.  It looks like you prefer the track over XC?  Do you prefer the shorter 1,600 and 800 distance to the 3,200?

2014 OHSAA D2 State XC 

There are aspects of track and XC that I love, but when it comes down to racing, I much prefer being on the track. I'm more of a speed person, so the shorter race distances suit me - don't expect to see me in too many 3200's! I've always had a hard time being able to translate my track competitiveness to 3.1 miles on grass. My team really uses cross country more as training for track than as its own individual season, and we train with pretty low mileage, which can have a more noticeable effect in cross country. I've actually had a pretty good string of bad luck at the state cross country meet too - in 2013 I lost a shoe about 600 meters into the race, and this past season I had pneumonia.

On the track Indoors you are the two time OATCCC D1 1,600m champion, winning in 2015 with a time of 5:02.52 and 2016 with a 4:54.50.  In 2014, you won the D1 800 in a time of 2:19.81.  In 2013, as a freshman, you were 6^th  in the 1,600 with a 5:26.23.  Outdoors, you have been to State in the 1,600 all three years, placing 10^th in 2013 with a 5:14.30, 5^th in 2014 with a 5:02.30 and 3^rd last spring with a 4:54.12.   You are the leading D1 returner and will be a favorite to win.  Before we talk about the upcoming outdoor season, let's go back to the start of your running career.

Watch 2014 OATCCC D1 Girls 800m

Watch 2015 OATCCC D1 Girls 1,600m

Watch Interview with Micaela after 1,600 Win at 2015 OATCCC Championship

Watch 2016 OATCCC D1 Girls 1,600m  (Sorry about no audio)

Watch Interview with Micaela and Lainey Studebaker after 1,600 Win at 2016 OATCCC Championship

Did you participate in any other sports before you started track?  When did you first start running? What did you run? 

I played soccer for a bit, but wasn't very good. I always raced friends on the playground or my neighbor down the driveway when I was younger, and I've always been pretty fast. I did a Running Club in elementary school, but really started running in 7th grade cross country. I loved the team and the experience, and have been running ever since. The 400 was my favorite race in middle school (I think I ran around a 62!).

As a freshman, were you settled on running the 1,600, or were you running any shorter or longer distances?  What were your expectations as you entered your freshman year?  You made it to State in the 1,600.  What was your experience like running in Jesse Owens Stadium for the first time?

2013 D2 OHSAA 1,600m

Coming into freshman year, I hated the 1600. I was still convinced that the 400 was going to be my best event. In middle school, running the 1600 to me only meant being tired for the 400. Most freshmen on our team start out in the 800, so that's where I began. My coach moved me to the 1600 because he thought I had a better chance to qualify for State (we were still Division II at this point). I think running in Jesse Owens Stadium for the first time was a good experience as a young runner, but, like a lot of freshman who make it to State, I got caught up in the excitement of the State meet.  I was happier just to be there than I was focused on racing. 

How did your expectations change from your freshman year to your sophomore, to your junior and now your senior year?

My freshman year was more of taking everything in and being glad that I qualified than actually focusing on competing. Things really changed my sophomore year when my team moved up to Division I for track for the first time. As one of the smallest DI schools, at first we were a little wary of the change, but we rose to the challenge and decided that we were going to compete no matter what. The focus and drive on the team changed drastically, and my personal expectations changed from qualifying to states to competing and even winning. I won my first State title indoors that year, and began to learn my abilities as a racer.

1st 2014 OATCCC D1 800m 2:19.81

Junior year, I was really focused on being as competitive as possible at the state level. I was unfortunately sidelined by an injury (stress reactions in both shins) and had to miss pretty much the entire regular outdoor season. I was able to come back strong in the post-season on very minimal training and this gave me a lot of confidence going into senior year.  My goal for this year and my expectations have been to be as competitive as I can be at the National level. 

In the State 1,600 you were 3^rd last year.  Annie Heffernan of St. Ursula Academy won in 4:48.39.  Hilliard Davidson's Lilly Saniel-banrey was second, just .45 seconds ahead of you.  Realistically, what did you think your chances of winning were going into the race?  Heffernan has moved on to Notre Dame and was one of the best distance runners in Ohio history.  Saniel-banrey is at Ohio State.  How would you describe that race? 

My junior outdoor season was very unexpected. After being in great shape coming off of a solid indoor season, I ended up with stress reactions in both shins and had to take 5 weeks with no running. My first day back "running" (jogging half a mile) was a few days out from Districts, but I didn't want to give up on the season and jumped into the District race. I ended up making it to the State meet even though I had only really run a few times.

2015 OHSAA D1 4x800m finish.  Centerville's Lainey Studebaker (9:00.82) caught Geneva's Brittany Aveni (9:01.41) at the finish.  DeGenaro anchored Granville (9:01.80) to 3rd in one of the closet races of the meet.  

I split a huge PR in the 800 in the 4x800 the day before, so I knew I had the chance to be right up in front in the 1600 the next day, regardless of how little training I had. Annie and Lilly are both outstanding runners and I've always enjoyed racing with them, but both are stronger pushing the early parts of a race than I am. I let a gap open up early and spent most of the race playing catch-up, and when I finally worked my way back up I didn't have as much left for a big kick. It certainly wasn't one of the best races I've run, but given the circumstances leading up to it, I was thrilled to have run as fast as I did. 

Before we talk about the upcoming outdoor season, let's go back to indoors and your training coming off of your XC base.  We were fortunate to have a mild winter.  After XC, what was a typical week for you during the indoor season?  What type of workouts were you doing?  Did you think going into the Indoor season that you would be able to go under 4:50?  The base was there from XC, but 4 seconds can be difficult.  Did you think that you needed more speed work and competitive 800's before OATCCC State?

Indoor season for us is a lot of gradual base-building and strength workouts with a few faster workouts to get us in shape so that we don't fall flat come June. Especially since I've dealt with injury, my mileage has been pretty low (around 35 miles a week). A typical week would have 1-2 recovery/easy days, 2-3 longer tempo/strength workouts, usually on soft surfaces (Granville is hilly, so we do a lot of hill runs), and one faster workout, sometimes on the track since it happened to be clear this year. I never did any speed work or specific workouts, just a few reps at 3200 or 1600 pace to get my legs moving and used to the work. A big philosophy on my team is "train high, race low," so I did a lot of over-distance workouts at tempo/3200 pace, and raced some solid 800s to ready for a fast 1600. Once we started racing indoors, the 800's were supposed to take of most of the speed that I needed to get through the winter. We never try to peak for anything indoors as our most important goals are still months away, so most of my work was geared towards long-term fitness. I never really thought about time coming in to the indoor season, but as the season went on, I began to realize that I could run a lot faster than I thought. 

What is your 400 speed?

I split a low 57 indoors my junior year on a 4x400, but haven't had the chance to get in an open 400 yet (although hopefully I will soon!). You won't hear this from most distance runners, but the 400 is one of my favorite races. 

How would you describe yourself as a runner?

More than anything, I'm a racer. I'm extremely competitive, and do my best when the only thing I am worried about is winning. I have better speed than endurance, so I have a pretty strong kick late in races. 

What motivates Micaela as a runner?

Competition! I don't like to lose, and am slowly building my confidence to be fearless, no matter who I am racing against. Beyond being competitive, I think a lot of my motivation and inspiration as a runner comes from my teammates and those who have been in the program before me. Without them setting the bar and encouraging and supporting me, I never would have dreamt of running where I am today, and they have certainly helped motivate me to be the best that I can possibly be. 

Have your expectations for the Outdoor season changed with the time that you ran at NBNI in the 1,600?  What are your expectations for the outdoor season?  Has your goal changed?  Is an All-Time State record in sight? 

I usually don't set specific time goals for myself since I prefer to focus on racing. Indoors, I wanted to be All-American, and I was disappointed to miss that by only half a second, so a Top-6 finish at Outdoors Nationals is one of my biggest goals for this coming season.  It seems far more realistic after my success this indoor season. Before now, I never really thought about the All-Time State record, but it is something I now have in the back of my mind and is a challenge I'm excited to take on. 

In essence 5 seconds is doable, but as you know, it is much easier to go from 5:05 to 5:00 than it is to go from 4:46 to 4:41.  We have watched you battle down the finish last year at the State meet and also at NBNI.  It is not a matter of will or determination, but will come down to speed and closing strength and perhaps having someone to push you through the 1200?  How good are you with pace?   What kind of pace work outs do you do?

4:46 to 4:41 is a big drop, but I think given the right race, it will be doable. As a racer, it is really easy for me to get dragged along in a really fast race like at Indoor Nationals. I struggle more when I have to do the early pacing myself, and this indoor season was the first time I encountered problems finding races that would go out fast enough for me to be able to sit back and relax early.  I'm slowly learning how to take the lead early and stay relaxed. I'm hoping to get in at least one fast race in the regular season to test myself against some strong competition and hopefully run a fast time. We usually don't do straight pace work, but instead we do work faster or slower than goal race pace, or run pace with surge reps thrown in, so that when I do get in a race it feels a lot easier. 

You have a teammate, Natalie Price, who is a State Champion Indoors in the 400, running a 55.63.  Good 400 speed is essential to run a fast 1,600.  It's nice to have a partner to train with.  Do you see speed workouts with Natalie as a plus or will you concentrate more on pace and distance strength training?

Sr. Natalie Price ran 55.94 at NBNI.

Natalie and I were both hurt at the same time last year, so it is awesome for both of us to be back and racing together! My team does more training at longer than race distance, and we get more of our speed from racing. We don't get into "true" speed work until the very end of outdoors. For someone like me, with a lot of base speed, building distance strength training and working on pace is a lot more important, especially at this stage of the season. I'm very lucky to have some extremely talented teammates to train with and push me on longer, tempo-like runs that I tend to struggle on. 

The last two weeks of the Indoor season, the OATCCC 1,600 and the NBNI 1,600 were breakthrough runs for you.  What changed for you in moving from a very good mid-distance runner to now one of Ohio's best ever?