Yersak puts accident in past
Alex Yersak had finished one of the best workouts of his life.
It was a cool, rainy, windy day in early February. A couple days earlier, the Cherokee High School senior had run away from the field to win the 3,200 meters at the South Jersey Group 4 championships in a personal-best 9:44.97. The way he won — unchallenged, finishing 30 meters ahead of the field — hinted of much more to come.
And then there was that workout a couple days before the state Group 4 meet.
“It was a threshold workout, and we did three-by-a-mile at threshold and then four-by-200,” Cherokee coach Steve Shaklee recalled.
“It wasn't even on the track, it was on a measured mile on trails, with some hills and lots of turns. But he ran 5:08, 5:04 and 5-flat, and it looked so easy and under control. Then he did all the 200s in 29 or 30. It wasn't even as much the times as how easy he made it look. I remember thinking, "Wow, he's ready.'“
An hour later, Yersak was navigating the treacherous Marlton roads on his way home when disaster struck. Yersak was in an accident, and not only was he banged up pretty badly, he was forced to stand outside for over an hour in the rain and cold waiting for a tow truck. He wound up not only with battered muscles and bones but with a lingering fever and then pneumonia.
The state meet and Meet of Champions? No way. Yersak's indoor season was over, and his preparation for outdoors would have to wait.
“It was so disappointing,” Yersak said. “I was really ready for the state meet. I had just run 10 miles in 58 minutes. I couldn't wait to see how I could do. It was just another setback. I tried to stay positive, but it was hard.”
Yersak this fall won his third consecutive South Jersey Group 4 cross country championship, something nobody else has ever done. His seventh-place finish at states helped Cherokee win its fifth state title in 11 years and earned him all-state honors.
Track has been another story.
“I've never really run well in the spring,” Yersak said. “It's been a different thing every year. The big thing for me is my allergies. If you haven't gone through it, it's hard to even explain how bad it is. When they're bad, it makes it hard to do anything (running-wise).”
Yersak, finally healthy now, opened this outdoor season with legs on winning distance medley and 3,200-meter relay teams at Saturday's 39th annual Hall of Fame Relays at Maple Shade. Cherokee will shoot for a Penn Relays 4-by-800 qualifier at the Moorestown Invitational this weekend.
The only concrete goal Yersak will admit to for the spring is 9:28 for the deuce, or a second faster than older brother Tom ran (9:29.89 at the 2004 state meet).
“It's my last season in high school and I just want to have my best season ever,” Yersak said. “I want to surprise myself this year. It's my last season. I want to make it a great one.”