Two SHHS Alumnae Make Olympic Trials
SHHS Coach Bill Coren
OMG! Allie Wilson and Grace Forbes, two of my former Strath Haven track students, made the Olympic trials! They raced on national TV! One of them was the youngest runner in the 10,000 meter run. The other made it all the way to the finals, finishing sixth overall in the 800 meter run. How proud am I?!
Allie Wilson. Photo courtesy of Allie Wilson.
The Wilson and Forbes families are well known members of the Wallingford-Swarthmore community. Growing up, all of their boys and girls had run for their Catholic youth organization (CYO) teams and had been nurtured by Coaches Venturini, Balmer, Carey, and Ribble. Here is a quote from Coach Venturini: “Allie and Grace were great examples for their teammates while running for the St. John Chrysostom CYO track team, because of how they shared their gifts. We tried to keep practices and competitions fun, while focusing on proper youth training principles. We did not want them or anyone else focusing solely on winning. When it came time to race, Allie and Grace followed the plan. They were able to do the little things well, while supporting and encouraging teammates. There are some things that a coach cannot teach — one of those is the willingness to push yourself to the limit — and they had that as early as elementary school. They were and are a coach’s dream.”
Allie Wilson and Grace Forbes became standouts in track at the highest level, and the other members of their families had much success as well. Did I expect that these two young women would be this good? Well, I’m not totally surprised: they were great in high school and showed the determination and grit that would help them in later endeavors.
As their high school coach, I could always count on Allie and Grace. They are six years apart but have lots in common. Their teams never lost a meet in high school. Allie won 14 state medals and Grace won 15. Allie held five school records and Grace holds nine. (Grace took down four of Allie’s records). They both responded well to my encouragement (“You’re Strath Haven — act like it!!”) And most importantly, they had fun!
Grace Forbes
Allie competed at a high level at Monmouth College. After a serious foot injury, she recovered and made a huge improvement. She is currently running professionally with the Atlanta Track Club – and their coaching has been spot on!
Grace is in her second year at Rice University, where she joined her sister Maddie, and will soon be joined by her youngest sister Maggie. Grace trains mainly on the treadmill, and that has paid off. Her current coach has done an awesome job keeping the reins on her and making sure she stays healthy.
As for me, my phone is, as the kids say, “blowing up!” Former athletes, opposing coaches, and parents are all calling to congratulate me and say nice things. It feels good realizing that I may have had at least a little to do with Allie’s and Grace’s success in track, and I hope I had a positive effect on their future life as well.
Now, a couple of poems from coach Coren for Grace and Allie…
Grace Forbes
Comments from opposing coaches never ever ceased
“Your little red head girl, she’s an absolute BEAST!!”
Grace — You are the BEST girl I’ve ever had the pleasure to coach
Your work effort is simply beyond reproach
Mama Forbes and her videos and dad shouting splits on the rail
The rest of the Forbes’ clan — always supportive — they never fail
Shout-outs in interviews to coaches, family, and friends
Your humility and real introspection never ends
Coach V and Coach Balmer helped you start track at CYO
XC took over Senior year, but soccer helped you go
Abs with Coach Porter and working on your guns
And of course going for 6 flat 7 mile runs
“Step into my office” you would always say
“What do you expect me to run today?”
Coach Williams’ hugs, and Ryan’s jokes were always nice
And working on Student Council giving Styer advice
Yes — You passed Tuohy down the stretch at Penn
Don’t worry-It will never happen again!!
“I feel weak-I feel sick” then running a 2:07 split
You have too much pride to ever quit!
Lets not forget XC-running around the cones that Coren measured wrong
Maryland, Lehigh, Rose Tree, and Hershey-5K is pretty long
12 School Records — Indoor and Out
“Delco Times Runner of the Year” without a doubt
No more seconds!! — Milrose-800-4x8 we were number one
Running in Seattle is sure going to be fun!
“Slow Down” Coren yells during practice and in races too
Tangling with CBWEST and Goretti-those days are through
Don’t take all your teammates money in poker down at Rice
Remember even though you’re a hunter-underneath you are nice
Grace — It’s over — I will miss you more than you know
It was my personal honor to help you grow!!
99 IN A ROW — GO HAVEN GO!!!
Allie Wilson
So many coaches about Allie Wilson say so many a nice thing
A fierce competitor with a big smile you always bring
Very emotional, crying for so many different reasons
You’ve been a Haven track star for so many seasons
Starting in CYO with Coach V, you were a champ
In our Strath Haven record book, you’ve made quite a huge stamp
Taking down that 30-year old record that Coren hated
Beating McGroarty at DELCOS, Coren was elated!
Let’s not forget soccer, coached by TJ and Gino
Also running cross country, those hills were not so low
Sisters Val and Vicki and even Justin were usually there
Mom and dad and Uncle Russ showed how much they care
Ryan, Coach Williams, Porter, Ed, Lent, and Styer
Were all amazed-you never seemed to tire!
Never forget the Hannah’s — Grossman or Herrera
Friends like Bri, Kristen, and Abby are oh so rare(a)
Please improve your driving, and on trips watch out for strange men
Go easy on the tanning, you’re already a 10!
“Third time” may not have been the charm, but we tried again this year
Two relays were so close, you all ran hard until the end of your career
Remember all those intervals in the halls and outside in lane one
You were one of the best ever at Haven, when all is said and done!
Allie, never forget that last seniors’ lap at Shippensburg’s track
Let it stay with you always, next year you will not be coming back!!
WE’RE STRATH HAVEN — ACT LIKE IT!!
