He's 'Going' places: Chaminade runner eyes more wins

Liam Going has broken away from the pack. Now he wants to lead it.

In many ways, the Chaminade senior is already doing that. He finished second in the 1,000 meters in two minutes, 29.99 seconds at the New Balance Games at The Armory in Manhattan two weeks ago. No one from Mineola to Buffalo (or anywhere in between) has done that distance quicker this season. His time was the fastest in the state, as of Tuesday night, according to milesplit.com.

With the fast times established in emphatic fashion, Going’s now going for wins.

Going got one at last weekend’s Nassau-Suffolk CHSAA league championships, winning the 1,600 in a dominating 4:37.85. He hopes to continue that winning trend at the CHSAA Intersectional championships on Feb. 19 and the state championships on March 5.

He’s been really close in a few other races. Going finished second at the Ocean Breeze Freedom Games (1,600 meters) and the Stanner Games (one-mile), both held last month.

"I feel like I should be racing to win every race," Going said. "The mile I ran at the Stanner Games was a little bit faster. I don't think I could have won that race. But there have been other races. I ran a 1,600 at the Freedom Games. I feel like I should have won that race, definitely. Then, the 1,000 at New Balance, I feel like I should have won that as well."

Going continued: "So, it annoys me a little bit that I haven't won these races. I feel like I should have and I feel like I should have put myself in a better position. But I’m just focused on the races going forward and what I can control."

Going’s victory at the CHSAA league championships may be a harbinger for good things to come. After being so close in some of those larger races in the regular season, he knows what he has to do to close. It starts, he says, with a slightly more competitive opening lap. He wasn’t going out with the leaders and was determined to change that.

"I just need to be more confident in my abilities to be able to run with anyone, even if I end up dying a little bit toward the end," Going said. "I already have decent enough times, where it's not like I'm chasing a time anymore. I’m racing to win now."

Those fast times are particularly freeing for Going, who already has the New Balance Nationals qualifying standard in the 1,000 after running the 2:29.99 two weeks ago.

"That’s a little bit of weight off my shoulders," he said. "Now, I feel a little bit more free to race to win every race I’m in."

Going’s indoor success started with a strong cross country season. After getting hurt early in the CHSAA’s fall 2020 season, he didn’t quite have enough base training when the indoor season began. Now he does, and the results are undeniable. He’s simply running at a different level.

As a result, Going’s days of ‘pack running’ look to be over.

"I think I've done a lot more racing this year at a high level," Going said. "In the past, I’ve just been finishing in the pack. Now, I’m kind of learning how to race and what I have to do to win, which is important."

Suffolk girls rule state

The state leaderboard is becoming a who's who of Suffolk’s top athletes. Huntington’s Analisse Batista ran a 1:32.85 in the 600 at the Millrose Games last weekend, good for second place in the race and first place on the state leaderboard. Mount Sinai’s Kate Del Gandio’s 8.22 in the 55-meter hurdles, run on Jan. 9, has spent nearly a month as the fastest clocking in the state.

In the field, Rocky Point’s Alexandra Kelly jumped 40 feet, 8 ½ inches to win the triple jump at the Suffolk League IV Championships and Huntington’s Kiana Nosile won the shot put with a 42 foot, nine inch throw at the Suffolk League II Championships, both held two weeks ago at Suffolk County Community College in Brentwood. Those marks were also tops in the state, as of Tuesday, according to milesplit.com.