The steeplechase traditionally has been a strong event for us at the MAAC Championships. This year was no different, as we got a runner-up spot in the women’s race by our reigning school-record holder and ECAC qualifier, Brittany Burns; and in the men’s race, we collected four (4!) scoring spots, led by school-record holder and IC4A qualifier Quimes DelaCruz.
Dig deeper and you’ll find the most compelling character in the race for us was junior Tommy Lipari. To say that Tommy has had a rough junior year would be an understatement. Sure, many of us think Tommy is the “boy who cried wolf,” as there is always some matter of gloom and doom surrounding him.
But this year, the gloom and doom were very real, as he battled an endless stream of injuries and illnesses in a never-ending cycle. It was enough to drive a lesser man to quit. Not Tommy.
He volunteered to run the steeple for points, the first time he has attempted the race in two years. Remember: Tommy is “vertically challenged,’’ and those barriers are, well, barriers.
A week and a half before MAACs, Tommy comes down with his seemingly monthly illness. High fever. Sore throat. The usual deal. After 4-5 days off, he starts running again. Almost immediately, his hip flexor injury from last year comes screaming back. He’s back on the shelf. I tell him I will scratch him. It’s not worth it, I say.
He says no. Let’s make it a game-day decision. Before the race, he is shaking his head and mumbling; not good. He warms up. I watch him do strides. He looks OK. I say nothing, and Tommy takes the line. He grits his teeth through the pain, he gets over every barrier without face-planting … and he scores about the hardest-earned single point in the entire meet, finishing sixth.
Afterwards, he is soaked and hobbling. After all he’s been through, I’m proud of him and the effort he exerted for the team he loves.
Thanks for Erin O’Reilly for providing the cool black-and-white picture of Lipari that accompanies this post.
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