Phil Anastasia: Seneca set for Holmdel

"When you first go there, everybody is always like, 'Oh, my God, Holmdel,' " Seneca's Austin Powell said. "We were like that. Now we're over that."

Holmdel Park in Monmouth County, with its famous bowl in the middle of its famous course, is the site of Saturday's state cross-country championships, as well as the Nov. 21 Meet of Champions. It's the sport's historic home base.

For Powell, as well as fellow Seneca seniors Lyndsy Horn and Nicole McGrainer, Holmdel represents the reward for all those hard miles. And the reminder of past struggles. And the realistic chance for future glory.

"We worked so hard for this, and now we have a chance to do something really special," Horn said. "I know when we get to the line at states we're all going to want to go out in style."

Horn, Powell, and McGrainer led Seneca to its third consecutive South Jersey Group 3 championship Saturday at Delsea. Horn covered the course in 19 minutes, 6 seconds to finish third, while McGrainer (19:53) and Powell (19:57) also placed in the top eight.

Now, the Golden Eagles move to Holmdel with the chance to capture the program's first state title, or at least finish in the top three and qualify for the Meet of Champions.

"If we got second or third, it would be great," Seneca coach Jenn Denn said. "Fourth would be tough to take. If we won, we would go out of our minds."

The Golden Eagles have a chance to take that next step, thanks to their senior leaders as well as a talented group of young runners. Voorhees, Hopewell Valley, Princeton, and Northern Highlands also figure to contend for the Group 3 team title.

Seneca's team average for its top five runners at the sectionals was 20:13. That's right there with Hopewell Valley's 20:09, although Voorhees is capable of much better than its 20:23 average because some of its runners were battling illness at the North II sectionals.

Seneca's seniors are motivated. The Golden Eagles were disappointed to finish fourth at the state championships last season, even though McGrainer ran a strong race and placed 10th. Seneca was 11th in the team race in 2007.

"It's almost like we have a chance to redeem ourselves," Horn said.

Horn and Powell have been four-year members of the program. McGrainer joined the team last season and made an immediate impact.

"It's like the three of us all bring different qualities," McGrainer said. "We've grown so much this year as runners and as a team."

As seniors, the three girls have a keen sense of the approach of the end of their cross-country careers. They also know they have a chance to further establish the sport's tradition at the seven-year-old school in Tabernacle, Burlington County.

"It's really cool," Horn said. "The school is so young, and if we can accomplish something, maybe future cross-country runners will look at what we did and say, 'Wow, those girls were good.' "

It all began this season for the three seniors when they got together for summer runs. It will end, one way or another, at Holmdel.

The course has a mystique, but these girls are seniors. They know Holmdel. They're ready to run their best in the biggest meet of the season.

The team went to Holmdel on Monday. The girls ran the course. They did some speed work. They set the stage for Saturday's big race.

"It used to be so scary," Powell said. "Now it's like one of my favorite places to run. We were there Monday, and it was great. Plus, we stopped at a diner on the way home."