Six Seconds of Record-Breaking History
Six seconds. For many, six seconds may seem like a brief moment: a moment that is fleeting and easy to forget. However, for University of La Verne senior distance runner Lenore Moreno, six seconds will never be forgotten; Lenore broke an 11-year NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championship meet record by six seconds.
鈥淕oing into the meet, I had no idea what the record was, and I was hoping to come away with a simple win,鈥� said Moreno. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know that I was capable of breaking a record until I heard the announcer on the intercom say that if I pushed hard the record could be mine. So right then and there, I really wanted to win, and breaking the record would be an added bonus that would be really exciting.鈥�
The 5,000-meter record from the 2003 Division III Indoor Championship was previously held by Geneseo State鈥檚 Melissa White with a time of 16:39.16.
Moreno鈥檚 winning time of 16:32.85 adds to her collection of All-American awards, putting her in the company of a select few in La Verne history. According to Athletics Communications Director Sean Lee, Moreno is the third female All-American at La Verne and fifth athlete overall for the Division III Indoor Championships.
鈥淟enore breaking the national meet record was impressive. There have been a number of excellent runners in Division III, but in the 30-year history of the meet, no one has done it faster鈥� said assistant track and field coach Bryan George. 鈥淪ix seconds may not seem like much, but is actually quite a large margin.鈥�
Lenore has competed at indoor meets at Northern Arizona and Washington earlier this year, well as one or two indoor meets in past seasons. Nonetheless, this win also reaffirmed her passion for running, that this is the sport she loves the most.
鈥淚鈥檝e always wanted to achieve an NCAA title and that was the one goal missing, so to finally achieve it was an incredible feeling,鈥� said Moreno. 鈥淭here are hardly any words to explain it. Honestly, I just wanted to break down and cry right there because I couldn鈥檛 believe it. It鈥檚 a moment that I wish could have lasted longer; it was definitely unbelievable.鈥�
From the academic to athletic aspects of her time on campus, she attributes her success to the positive environment found across the entire University.
鈥淚 feel that it鈥檚 a huge honor to be able to represent such a special group of student athletes at La Verne, and I鈥檓 very fortunate that the faculty, staff, and professors are all very supportive of me,鈥� said Moreno. 鈥淢y teammates are always rooting for me and they help me and pick me up when they know I鈥檓 struggling.鈥�
She continued, 鈥淚t鈥檚 just a very good environment and a great team atmosphere to be a part of, and I know I wouldn鈥檛 have been so successful if I didn鈥檛 have all the support from everybody.鈥�
In addition to the well-rounded support received on campus, each Leopard athlete receives a unique training plan to prepare for meets, and Moreno says she has been training very hard for a long time. Coach George can also attest to that.
鈥淢ost people can relate to running a mile or two, but Lenore would typically run between 70 and 90 miles a week,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he plan is different for every runner, but she thrives on high mileage. Lenore has such a strong work ethic and is so determined; she makes my job as a coach pretty easy.鈥�
He continued, 鈥淪he entered the meet as the top-ranked girl in the 5K, but being ranked number one and actually winning are two totally different things. I was proud that she was able to come through on such a big stage.鈥�
The training plan Moreno tackled was well-received, and she believes it definitely contributed to her indoor success.
鈥淚f my coach didn鈥檛 encourage me about that training routine, I never would have done that much on my own, and I never would have thought something like that much mileage would help me,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 just put all my trust and faith in my coach, and he told me 鈥榶ou鈥檙e capable of winning an indoor title as well as an outdoor one 鈥� you鈥檙e just going to have trust me and this training plan.鈥� So I did and I鈥檓 so grateful that the outcome was right. I owe a lot of credit to him.鈥�
With the historic record behind her, Lenore is doing everything but forgetting it.
鈥淚t鈥檚 something I鈥檓 never going to forget, and I feel that it gave me a boost of confidence in all aspects of my life, not just in running. If I want something, I know I can work hard and achieve it,鈥� she said.
Up next for Moreno is the 2014 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship, which will take place in May at Ohio Wesleyan University.
She is using her win as motivation and is focusing on training even more as she hopes to win an outdoor title as well.
鈥淭he record is kind of an added pressure with other teams being on the lookout and knowing, but I feel like I can turn that around into motivation and use it as energy to hopefully achieve it again,鈥� said Moreno. 鈥淭hat would be great.鈥�
