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Albany's Hannah Reinhardt, A Former Walk-On, Made Bold Move To Win NCAA Northeast RegionalPublished by
'Mentally Tough' Hannah Reinhardt Has Come Long Way To Make NCAA Starting Line
By Theresa Juva Brown for DyeStat / Photos by Jay Bendlin
Hannah Reinhardt of the University at Albany knew she had to seize her opportunity and not look back.
With about a half mile to go in Friday’s NCAA Division 1 Northeast Regional Cross Country Championships in Buffalo, N.Y., Reinhardt pulled away from her two nearest competitors and took the lead. “I had this very clear thought in my head, ‘If I make a move now, and even if I end up getting caught, I will still be in third and get a qualifying (national championship) spot,’” recalled the 21-year-old senior. Reinhardt wasn’t completely convinced she would win the 6-kilometer race until she saw the finish line. Years of relentless determination culminated in one jubilant moment for Reinhardt, an Albany walk-on who finished 106th in the same meet as a freshman and 23rd just a year ago.
She broke the tape in 19:28.4 – three seconds ahead of Harvard's Anna Juul – to become the NCAA Division 1 Northeast Cross Country champion and earn a place for the first time at the NCAA Division 1 National Cross Country Championships, which will be held Saturday at the LaVern Gibson Course in Terre Haute, Ind.
Reinhardt became the first Albany female athlete to advance to nationals since Silvia del Fava placed 72nd at the Division 1 championship meet in 2013, also in Terre Haute.
“I had played a moment like this over and over and over again in my head,” she said, adding that she wasn't rattled when she found out the race would be held on the roads after bad weather destroyed the original race route at the Amherst Audubon Golf Course.
Following a tearful celebration with her sister and boyfriend at the finish line, Reinhardt, a Buffalo-area native, finally embraced Matt Jones, head coach of the men's and women's cross country teams at Albany.
From the beginning, he saw potential in Reinhardt that she says she only recently recognized. When Reinhardt first met Jones during an informal visit to Albany as a high school senior, she considered herself a “no-name” runner with unimpressive race times. She had started running as a teenager to cope with the stress of living in foster care, but wasn’t sure if she wanted to run competitively in college. They spent two hours talking in his office about running and life, which had been especially hard for Reinhardt as she navigated countless moves among relatives and friends throughout her childhood. “He really does care about you not just as a runner – he cares about you as a human,” Reinhardt said. “That’s rare in coaches at the highest level. It can be all about your PRs. For me, I want someone interested in my well-being. It makes him a really special coach.” Reinhardt’s strength, Jones says, is that she is eager to improve as an athlete, but has also been patient with her progress. “You have talented people, and you have people who get the most out of their ability,” Jones said. “I think she gets the most out of what she’s got. It’s not only physical ability. It’s that she is mentally tough.” Still, he didn’t pressure Reinhardt to focus on winning the regional cross country title last week. Their main goal, he says, was to earn a spot at nationals. In the week before regionals, Reinhardt deleted all her social media accounts to eliminate outside chatter that, in the past, made her anxious.
“I paid close attention to (race) predictions, and it can be really cool to have your name out there, but it can be destructive to your focus, to me especially,” she said.
At last year’s regional race, Reinhardt was crushed when she finished 23rd and missed qualifying for nationals. “I went out too hard, and I let the pressure take over,” she said. “This year I’ve been approaching my races a little differently. I’m focused on being more composed and just being mindful of the fact, that, yeah there are fast girls in this, but I can do this.”
She knows she belongs on the starting line of the national championships Saturday, but “I don’t want to be satisfied with just being in the race," she said. "I want to be competitive.” More news |
“He had a big grin on his face, and he said, ‘I’m so proud of you. I knew you could do it,’” Reinhardt said. 
