First the 1,600 then the 3,200.
In a two-week stretch, Bishop O’Connell High School senior runner Molly Weithman broke longstanding school records in two girls distance races during the indoor track and field season.
The latest was her time of 10:40.78 in the 3,200-meters, set March 9 in Boston at the New Balance Indoor Nationals at the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center. That time broke the old mark of 10:46 set by Sarah McCarthy in 2011. McCarthy went on to run in college at Georgia State University.
Weithman set the mark running in the second heat of the event, finishing third.
“She broke the record by five seconds, that’s a big deal,” O’Connell coach Jim Connor said.
Weithman said her goal had been to break that mark for about two years. She fell back in the pack at the start of the race, then eventually surged into the lead. She was outkicked at the finish over the final 400 meters.
“I was really nervous for the race because I didn’t know where my endurance was for the 3,200. I hadn’t been running that distance for a while,” Weithman said. “But I had a strong race and ran well. I feel good because it was my last high school indoor meet.”
On Feb. 24, Weithman set a new girls school record in the 1,600 with a time of 5:01.2 at the Roadrunners Invitational at George Mason University. That broke a record that had stood for 45 years.
She also holds the girls school record in a 5K race in 17:41, giving her three marks all set this year.
During the upcoming outdoor spring season, Weithman wants to run faster and lower the school records she now owns.
“I really want to break 5 minutes in the 1,600,” she said.
Weithman has become possibly the most accomplished girls distance runner in O’Connell history. She has won two Division I state cross country championships, as well as three other state titles during the indoor and outdoor seasons. Aslo, Weithman has been a top finisher in multiple Washington Catholic Athletic Conference meets and is a past Arlington County cross country champion, with other finishes seconds and thirds during her high-school career.
At this season’s private-school state indoor meet, Weithman won the 3,200 and was second in the 1,000 and 1,600 – all the same day.
Starting in the fall, Weithman will run for the College of William and Mary cross country and track and field teams.
