| NEWS |
  
|
| FEATURES |
| ENTERTAINMENT |
  
|
| COLUMNS |
     |
| CONTACT US |
|
| HOW TO SUBMIT |
|
|
| BACK ISSUES |
|
|
 (Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) caption:
|
Undeterred by Dislocated Shoulder, McKinley Soars Into PHS Record Book
By Bill Alden
When Tom McKinley dislocated his right shoulder competing in the pole vault in early May, it would have been easy for the Princeton High senior to throw in the towel.
After all, it was the third time McKinley had injured his right shoulder in his high school career and with just weeks remaining in the spring season, his prospects for getting back on the track looked dim.
Instead, McKinley threw himself into a grueling rehabilitation regimen. Amazingly, McKinley was back in action just 10 days after the injury, taking third in the pole vault at the Mercer County Championship meet. McKinley kept soaring as he vaulted 13'6 to take second in the Group III state meet and qualify for the Meet of Champions. The curly-headed senior saved his best for last as he soared to 14'6 to take fifth at the Meet of Champions and break his school record of 13'10.
Looking back on his spring season, McKinley said he was determined not to let the shoulder injury ruin his high school track finale.
"I was thinking about making a comeback," said McKinley, recalling his thoughts upon getting hurt.
"I wasn't going to let that end my senior year. I worked two hours a day, three days a week on my rehab. I worked with stretch cords, I did some weight lifting and I did the arm bike. It hurt pretty much the rest of the year; it hurt a lot after the meets."
McKinley is proud of how he came through in the Meet of Champions as he missed twice at just about every height before clearing the bar on his way to the school record.
"I was pretty relaxed, the hard part was making it there," said McKinley. "On the third tries I was digging deep. I ran a little harder down the runway. I pretty much gave everything I had. I was hoping to get at least 14 feet."
For McKinley, who was also a sprint star for the PHS swimming team, that kind of competitive fire comes naturally.
"I refuse to lose," asserted McKinley, who is heading this fall to Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania where he plans to continue his track career by competing in the decathlon as well as the pole vault. "You can't let anybody beat you. You keep going no matter what."
In the view of PHS track coach John Woodside, the effort McKinley produced at the Meet of Champions was a fitting finale for his pole vault star.
"That was his greatest night ever," asserted Woodside. "It was a testament to Tom's will, determination, and hard work."
McKinley's graduation will leave a void in the PHS track program on many levels, according to Woodside.
"Tom is a competitor," said Woodside, noting that McKinley broke the school record in the triple jump this spring with a leap of 40' 3 1/2 and also scored points in the sprints.
"He also worked a lot with the younger kids. He knows so much, it was like having another assistant coach. I'm grateful he was able to do so much for us. I think he will just go higher and higher at Slippery Rock, it's a real pole vaulting mecca."
Luckily for Woodside, McKinley turned to the pole vault when he sputtered at other events. "When I was a freshman, I wasn't that good at sprinting," recalled McKinley with a laugh.
"I saw the pole vaulters and I thought I'd like to give that a try. I think I did eight feet the second day and nine feet in my first meet. I guess I picked it up pretty quickly."
Competing in swimming helped McKinley progress in the pole vault. "The swimming helped my upper body strength and added endurance," explained McKinley. "I can train harder on the pole vault. It also strengthened my shoulder when I hurt it before."
As he looked ahead to last week's graduation, McKinley took pride in what he accomplished and learned through his PHS sports experience.
"Being part of a swimming team that won four sectional titles was a highlight," added McKinley, who plans to compete in USATF meets this summer and is aiming to up his personal best to 15 feet.
"Another highlight was breaking the school record at the Meet of Champions. I just loved being on the track team. I gained confidence and learned responsibility through sports."
McKinley fulfilled his responsibilities unlike few others in recent PHS athletics history.
