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[I wrote the feature stories for the boys and girls cross country athletes of the year for the Statesman. I interviewed Emily on Nov. 19.]

South Salem’s Weber focuses on success of her team
By Lee Clarkson
Statesman Journal
November 25, 2010

Ask Emily Weber about her personal achievements this season and she’ll likely shift the topic to how well she and her South Salem teammates fared.

So much for cross country being an individual sport.

“If I was running by myself and I didn’t have a team, then I guess I feel like I wouldn’t be supported,” Weber said. “It’s just easier to know that my teammates are supporting me and we’re all supporting each other.”

Weber repeated as the Central Valley Conference district champion and placed 20th at the OSAA state championships. Her success has earned her the Statesman Journal’s All-Mid-Valley Athlete of the Year for girls cross country.

The Saxons had a successful year as well, winning the CVC district team title and capping the season by placing fifth at state.

South Salem coach Lis Ann Saxe was pleased with her team’s performance this season despite a tinge of disappointment among her athletes about their performances at state.

“They’ve had an incredible season, and I was very proud of what they accomplished,” Saxe said. “Even though they felt like individually they didn’t run as well as they would have liked, from a coach’s point of view, I was tremendously proud of their efforts.”

The team showed it was ready for a successful season at the Concordia Puma Classic on Oct. 16, a meet that included future state meet opponents. The Saxons ran in the elite division.

Weber posted a season-best time of 18:25.8, and her teammates followed suit with bests of their own.

“I think of the Puma Classic because everybody had a good day,” Weber said. “Everybody got PRs, and that was really fun for everybody.”

The meet also was the debut of the girls’ tongue-in-cheek “secret weapon.”

“They pulled out the ‘tough shorts’ — Under Armour spandex shorts — because they wanted to look tough,” Saxe said. “As soon as they finished, and all of them ran incredible times, the first response of several of them was ‘it was the shorts.’ It wasn’t, of course, the shorts.”

Injuries have affected Weber throughout her high school career. She missed significant time in her freshman and sophomore cross country seasons because of injuries.

As a result, the coaching staff was cautious with Weber this season, and she ran only four races.

“She wasn’t injured,” Saxe said. “She came in strong, but … we wanted to err on the side of caution.”

It’s been difficult for Weber to hold back, but she understands the reasoning, given her history.

“It’s really frustrating, but at the same time, I know I’m not getting injured so I can trust them,” Weber said.

With two meets under her belt, Weber ran 18:53.2 to defend her CVC title Oct. 27. She was happy with the win but was more pleased with the Saxons’ result.

“It felt good to repeat what I did last year, but it also felt even better that our team, we all improved a lot and everybody got even better times (than) last year,” Weber said. “It made all of us feel really good that we’re just all a solid group.”

Weber was hoping for a better result individually at the state meet Nov. 6, where she ran 19:33. Despite her personal disappointment, she was pleased with the team’s performance.

Notice the trend?

“I felt like I improved a little bit, but not nearly to the extent that I wanted to,” Weber said. “I realized at the first mile that I was going way too fast … and I kind of died towards the end.

“I felt really happy about (the team finish) because we got ninth last year and then this year we got fifth, and that’s a big improvement.”

Now begins Weber’s task of remaining healthy while maintaining her conditioning for track season, where she is the defending district champion at 1,500 and 3,000 meters. Winter workouts will start in December or January.

Saxe noted something about this offseason that is unique for Weber: “She doesn’t have to spend the winter recuperating (from injury).”

Having coached Weber for three seasons, Saxe has been able to see the transformation from a freshman to a junior in toughness and in her trust of the coaching staff.

“I thought she was tough as a freshman,” Saxe said. “It amazes me. She just continues to get tougher and tougher.

“I also see that trust and patience developing. … She is able to understand that we are on the same team, that the things we are asking of her are not in any way to hold her back but to help her be healthy at the end of the season.”

Weber hopes to remain healthy through track season and the summer so her senior season can be memorable.

“I know I haven’t reached my potential yet,” Weber said. “Hopefully, next year I’ll be able to race and train full-time so I can improve my time a lot.”

Saxe is excited by the possibilities that a healthy Weber could produce.

“I think we’re just at the tip of the iceberg,” Saxe said. “Some of it will depend on how her body holds up. … I think that once she is in tip-top shape health-wise, that we’ve only begun to see what she’s capable of.

“It’s just amazing to think what she could do on a full season’s worth of training.”

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