Storm’s O’Connor was dashing

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Storm’s O’Connor was dashing

Sports

Wednesday, 11 January 2012 14:33

News-Gazette Photo/Andrew SullivanCelebration’s Quincy O’Connor won conference, district and regional cross country championships and placed fifth at the Class 3A state meet.

Celebration runner won district, regional titles on way to state
By Rick Pedone
Sports Editor
Quincy O’Connor often likes to go on early evening runs and watch the stars. That sparked his interest in physics, a profession he plans to pursue, perhaps at an Ivy League school, after graduating from Celebration High in May.
“It’s really interesting. I’d like to study a field of physics that has to do with dating the stars,” O’ Connor said.
Meanwhile, the Storm senior posted almost out-of-this-world times during the cross country season as he successfully defended his Orange Belt Conference championship and added to that the 2011 district and regional crowns.
“The regional was a great race for me. It was at Lecanto High School, which was a different type of course, hilly, an interesting terrain,” O’Connor, a New York native who moved to Florida last year, said. “I was really pleased with my run there.”
That was a prelude to an equally impressive effort at the Class 3A state cross country meet at Dade City’s Little Everglades Ranch, where O’Connor placed fifth in 15:39, earning all-state honors.
“He had a good season. He turned in a real nice run at states,” Storm Coach Bart Roberts said.
O’ Connor, for the second straight year, is the Osceola News-Gazette’s Male Runner of the Year.
He backed up an excellent high school season by posting his best time of the year, 15:36, at the Foot Locker regional meet at Charlotte, N.C. The top high school runners from the Southeast competed in November.
“It was a good experience. There were a few hills there, and I had my best time. It was a good way to finish the season,” he said.
O’Connor is second only to Sean Blaney, who won the 2005 Class 2A state cross country championship at Celebration, as the school’s best cross country runner. Blaney earned a scholarship and ran at the University of Florida.
O’Connor said he plans to pursue the sport in college, as well. In addition to the Ivy League programs he also is thinking of the larger Florida universities to continue his career.
“I enjoy it, and I want to pursue something athletic in college,” he said.
When he moved to Florida from New York prior to his junior year, Blaney had to adjust to Florida’s suffocating humidity through the late summer and early fall months. After a strong start, he faded late in the season.
“It was much better this year. I knew what to expect and how to handle it,” he said.
While satisfied with his accomplishments during the cross country season, O’Connor has not reached his ultimate high school goal.
“I still want to win a state championship,” he said.
That opportunity will come soon enough, when the track season begins next month. He again will run the distance events for the Storm.
“The 1,600 (meters) probably is my better event. I feel I have a pretty good (finishing) kick, I have a lot more confidence in it now than I used to have,” he said. “I designed my training mainly for that event, but I may change it a little and see how well I can do in the 3,200. I think that is another good opportunity for me.”
And, he will keep on top of the rigorous math and science classes required become an astrophysicist.
“Yeah, there is a lot of studying, some pretty hard classes. That’s the part of it that’s not a lot of fun,” he said. “But, I’d love to teach and do research.”
And, maybe win a few more races.