Athlete of the Week: Holly Clarke & Hannah Oneda

Through six meets this Fall season, the Hopkins women’s cross country team dominated the competition with four number one finishes and a number two national ranking. That success has been driven by the tandem of junior Holly Clarke and freshman Hannah Oneda, two of the top runners in the nation, who have provided the Blue Jays with a formidable punch.

Beginning in late August, Oneda and Clarke finished 1-2 at the team’s opening meet in the Baltimore Metro Invitational, showing the rest of the Centennial Conference and the nation what was to come. From there, the two went on to lead Hopkins to one second place finish in September and three first place finishes in October. In total, the two have combined for a whopping four first place finishes and eight top five finishes.

As a junior, Clarke is a seasoned veteran who has been showcasing her talents for three seasons as a top runner for the Jays. On the other end of the spectrum, as a freshman, Oneda entered Hopkins with a clean slate and the expectation of doing her best. Through her first season Oneda has proven to be a consistently strong performer.

The News-Letter got in touch with the two runners as our dual Athletes of the Week for their performances in clinching the Centennial Conference Title for Hopkins this past weekend.

N-L: You have had a very successful first two years at Hopkins, describe your mentality this offseason heading into the latter part of your Hopkins cross country career?

HC: This summer my training and mentality for cross was to make a top finish at nationals both as a team and individually. I enjoy doing well individually but it means so much more when you do well as a team. Putting in so much time and work into training, I want to help prove that we are one of the fastest teams in the nation.

N-L: Discuss your teammate Hannah Oneda and the way you two seem to complement and feed off each other.

HC: Coming into the season, I knew Hannah was going to be a huge asset based on her high school performances. She pushes me in every workout and I make her work to maintain the edge she needs to win races. We work well on and off the course too which is key to feeling comfortable as front runners.

N-L: What are your thoughts on the team’s abilities heading into the NCAA Regionals and Nationals?

HC: I don’t want to jinx anything here but I honestly think that if we have the perfect day, we could win it. It’s going to be tough but we’ve got the talent and depth to set us a part from other teams.

N-L: All year you’ve been among the top runners at Hopkins and in the conference; what were your expectation coming into the season as a freshman?

HO: I wasn’t expecting anything at all coming into the season really. I know I had some good summer training in, but It’s hard to know where you are at if you haven’t raced in college before. It was difficult to tell after the first meet where anyone of us on the team would be because of how good our girls team is, but I think after the Navy Invite and Paul Short I began to realize that I could really compete against real good runners.

N-L: Which upperclassmen have taken you under their wing and have helped you develop as a runner this season?

HO: I think all the upperclassmen have really helped me and all of the freshman develop into good runners. I would say being able to run with Holly has been great, and having Lara [Shegowski, senior], Annie [Monagle, senior], and Liz [Provost, senior] as team captains as well has been wonderful. Also, my roommate [freshman] Sophia Meehan and I have become great running buddies, which is really nice to have.

N-L: You guys placed six runners in the top ten at the Conference Championships; what do you think has led to so much success for Hopkins in the conference?

HO: I think all the success for Hopkins really comes down to the work ethic of each girl on this team. We are serious about getting our sleep and recovery, as well as maintaining a healthy lifestyle that brings us to the best shape we can be. More than that though, I think we all look out for each other because we know we have the potential to do incredible things as a team here. Aka, win nationals.