The Justice

Media Credit: Max Matza

Many statistics stand out from Paul Norton's '11 performance last Saturday at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth Invitational. He completed the five-mile course in 25 minutes, 8 seconds, good for third place in a field of 278 runners from 38 different schools.

However, one statistic from this race does not show up on the box score: Norton's time last weekend shattered his personal best in a collegiate five-mile race by a staggering 45 seconds. His previous best-25:53-was logged at last year's UMass-Dartmouth Invitational.

"I thought I was in shape to run close to 25 minutes given the way our workouts go," Norton said. "The watch doesn't lie; the track doesn't lie. I was really happy, but I wasn't shocked. I put a lot of faith in myself, … my coach and my training, and knew I was capable of a huge improvement."

The start of the race was congested, with all 278 runners beginning at the same time. Yet while some of the participants tripped up at the starting line, Norton remained upright and stayed with the lead pack the entire race.

As a rookie competing in just his first collegiate race last season, Norton led the Judges with a second-place finish in a meet against Bentley College. That result was the start of a strong rookie campaign last season, and Norton is off to a hot start in his second season. Prior to this result, Norton placed first in the team's season-opening meet versus Bentley Aug. 29.

He credits an increase in his strength and stamina for this early season success. After running 60 to 70 miles a week last year, Norton has increased his training to 85 miles per week this season.

"I think now I just have to keep training well [and] stay healthy," Norton said. "I think I can be just as competitive in the bigger meets later in the season … hopefully take that [personal best] down and get it under 25 [minutes]."

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools