Athlete of the week: Megan Hannah

For the fifth time this season, Megan Hannah broke West Orange High School’s girls cross country school record with a time of 18:24. The sophomore broke the record at the districts race, where she placed first.  Earlier this season, Hannah first broke the record with a time of 19:12. On Oct. 31, Hannah competed at the Region 1 meet and placed 10th.

Tell me about breaking your school’s record. 

When I first broke it, it was the very first race of the season, and I broke it by only like 2 to 3 seconds. After that I continued to PR (get a personal record) and keep on breaking it.

How does it feel to break West Orange’s program record?

It feels really good. I’m really proud of myself. It’s just a great feeling to PR and improve every week.

What are your goals for the rest of the season?

I hope to maybe PR some more. I hope to make it to states. This week we have regionals on Saturday. I hope to place in the top 15 there and make it to states and then PR at states.

When did you start running competitively?

Last year was my first year ever running.

How much have you improved since last year?

I’ve improved a lot. My first race ever I got a 22:24. So I’ve PRed a lot and I hope to continue to improve my next two years.

How often do you train?

We train every day. We have practice Monday, Tuesday — recently, we’ve been having Wednesdays off — and then Thursday and Friday; and then Saturday we have the meets. Sundays we have long runs.

What made you want to run cross country?

My older brother is on the team. And that whole summer, he was bugging me to come out and try a practice. So I came out when the team was only doing a mile. Just to see what their times were. I guess I was OK and the coaches wanted me to come out. So I started, and I like it.

What’s your favorite subject in school and why?

My favorite subject is probably biology. I like learning about animals and all that fun stuff.

What do you like to do in your free time?

In my free time, I like to play with my dogs, and I like to draw. Most of the time I just rest. I also horseback ride.

How long have you been horseback riding?

For about 4 1/2 years.

What’s one thing that most people don’t know about you?

Most people don’t know that I run, actually. I’m shy in school so I don’t really talk.