By Brian Towey
Many of the races at the girls Queens PSAL championships last Thursday were punctuated by blanket finishes, runners tumbling over the finish line in droves, harriers jostling for position as they crossed the tape. There was a conspicuous gap in the competition, however, in both decisive heats of the 400 and 800 meters, as the one and two-lap Queens champion cruised home in convincing fashion.
The long-legged, gazelle-like strides that belonged to Cardozo senior Melanie Hardy left little question of who the borough’s best was in those two events.
After opening the 800 with a blistering 62 second split at the 400-meter mark, effectively gapping the field, Hardy coasted the second lap alone, crossing the tape at 2:19.1, her nearest competitor nearly 50 meters back.
After recovering from the two-lap win. Hardy drew the favorable fourth lane assignment for the 400 meter final. Bursting off the line, the spindly senior made up the stagger on the field by the time she hit the 100 meter mark, opening up an 8 to 10 meter gap by the 200 meters. As Hardy buzzed around the last turn she had picked up a comfortable 10-12 meter cushion on the competition, striding through the finish at 58.7.
While the cool, blustery weather and lack of competition weren’t conducive to fast times on this day, the Cardozo middle distance standout and her coach were encouraged by the day’s outcome, especially considering Hardy’s recent health problems.
Hardy had been hobbled for a good portion of the outdoor season by a stress fracture in her right foot, an injury she had originally aggravated this winter on the indoor circuit shortly after qualifying for the city championships at 600 meters. While recovery has been an on-going process as the University of Tulsa-signee gains her strength, the Queens championships afforded the senior a tune-up for the upcoming PSAL city championships.
“I was running by myself,” said Hardy. “And I’m not really happy with the times. But I felt great out there today. At this point I’m pretty much just catching up with my training.”
“She’s coming around,” said Cardozo girls track coach Jesus Vasquez. “She’s been improving real fast. At first we just had to give her light workouts, but now she’s back to full workouts.”
While the opportunity to test Hardy’s conditioning at this stage of the season was a blessing, Vasquez stressed that the racing atmosphere didn’t afford his star runner the type of pressure that keeps Hardy sharp.
“She was all by herself today,” said Vasquez. “She didn’t have the type of pressure for her to step it up. But I know once she gets to the (city championship) she’s going to step it up.”
Looking toward a career on the collegiate oval, Vasquez sees Hardy’s talents translating better in the longer of the 400/800 meter specialist’s two events, given her long, loping strides and considerable strength.
“I’m very confident she’ll do well at the next level,” said Vasquez. “I think she’ll be an 800 meter runner(in college) because of her stride.”
While the learning curve promises to be a steep one as Hardy makes the transition to Division I track, Vasquez feels his runner’s work ethic and dedication make her well-equipped for the jump up in competition.
“She’s very dedicated,” said Vasquez. “With the competition and the facilities at the college level, she should make some big improvements.”
Reach Contributing Writer Brian Towey by e-mail at TimesLedgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 130.
