SJA'S MICHELLE DAIGLE RUNS IN THE LEAD PACK AT 2022 LHSAA STATE MEET
When the competition is really good, St. Joseph's Academy head coach Mark LaHaye has to watch himself. If he is not careful, he reverts back to his roots as an excited parent, running all over the course and enjoying the sport as a fan. Forgetting--for a moment--he is the head coach of Louisiana's most successful program in the history of the sport.
It happened last week at the Division 1 Region 2 Meet at Baton Rouge's Highland Road Park.
"Dude, it was fun to watch," LaHaye said. "Elise Brown had a phenomenal race. Her and Michell Daigle tag teamed it the whole way. Those two were gunning for it. We were fortunate with the competition--the young lady from Baton Rouge and the young lady from Dutchtown--were really good."
Brown and Daigle went 1-2. Brown finished with a 17:18. Daigle was four seconds behind her teammate. Collectively, their times move them to the top two spots in the rankings of LHSAA's Divison 1.
Other runners in SJA's top five included Grace Rennhoff (4th; 18:00) and Hannah Vaughan, the defending state champion, who finished 7th with 18:11. The Stickers' No. 5 runner was Kaitlyn Francise (10th; 18:56).
Other runners making the top ten included Baton Rouge High's Lucy Thomas (3rd; 17:29) and Natalie Venkataraman (6th; 18:10), Southside's Jaci Gary (5th; 18:02), Dutchtown's Keira Melan (8th; 18:16), and St. Amant's Ella Willoughby (9th; 18:51).
St. Joseph's finished with 24 points, 67 points better than runner-up Baton Rouge High.
But it wasn't just his varsity runners who got LaHaye excited about his team's performance at regionals. All 9 junior varsity runners ran their personal best, including junior Sara Pasquier, who was SJA's overall No. 5 on the day.
Those performances by the junior varsity had LaHaye running the numbers and comparing races to see if any changes needed to be made on the team which will compete in Natchitoches on Monday, November 13 at the LHSAA Division 1 State Cross Country Championships and attempt to win SJA's ninth straight state championship.
After all of the figuring and comparisons, LaHaye did not make any changes to the top seven.
Natchitoches--and the top of the podium at the Walter Ledet Track & Field Complex--is a place the Stickers know well. LaHaye joined E.D. White and their head coach Josh Reed for the team's annual summer camp in Louisiana's oldest establishment. The camp included a couple of workout on the state championship course.
"We didn't know if we would be able to get on it," LaHaye said. "Josh called me when he got there and told me they had just cut it, so we were able to have a couple of workouts there."
LaHaye, as evidenced by his team's performance at regionals, is also accustomed to making sure his girls are running their fastest times of the season when it matters the most--at the end of the season. What has he learned over the last decade?
"We try to balance what we are doing," LaHaye said. "The training philosophy hasn't changed. The intensity and volume, we've learned to build. When I compare work outs from five years ago or more, we are running much faster and balancing with Hard-Easy that you hear a lot about."
Like getting caught up in a fun competitive cross country race, LaHaye takes that same philosophy into practice every day.
"I'm a CECP Coach, so I'm not at school all day," LaHaye said. "I tell the girls that practice is the best part of my day. It's the part I look forward to. It's not drudgery. When they have had a long day at school, I tell them that I have had a long day at work. When we come to practice it's time to leave that behind, work hard, and have fun."
The Stickers are hoping the fun continues at the 2023 LHSAA State Cross Country Meet.
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