Heartbreak for Meadows' Whowell, but no backing down

Rolling Meadows' Amanda Whowell has had anything but a typical running career for the Mustangs.

For every step forward, the senior seems to have taken two steps back, and for every success there seems to follow a heartbreak.

But there has been one thing consistent about Whowell - her sense of determination.

Whowell has had her share of injuries, including a stress fracture in her right ankle that ended her freshman cross country season and stress fractures in both hips that wiped out her sophomore season.

The senior has also had her share of disappointments, including her performance at the Palatine cross country sectional last season, where she missed out on a state qualification. The previous week the then-junior finished third at the Rolling Meadows regional and seemed poised to make it to state.

Whowell did qualify in the 1,600 for the Class AA track meet last season, marking her first state appearance. But she finished 12th in her heat and missed qualifying for Saturdays finals.

"It's very frustrating," said Whowell of her injuries and setbacks. "But with this sport there are so many elements involved everything has to be just right to have a great race.

"I just want for everything to come together."

Whowell has flashed glimpses of that happening.

Last season the junior finished ninth in the Mid-Suburban League cross country meet, then came back the following weekend and took third at the Rolling Meadows regional.

"I felt really good that day," said Whowell, who took a brief lead at the regional before being overtaken by Prospect's Annette White and being nipped at the finish line by Palatine's Colleen Standridge. "That was probably one of my best cross country races."

And it wasn't an easy road to get there. Whowell worked with Meadows head coach Jim Voyles on a plan to keep her healthy after the injuries her first two years.

"I found out after her freshman year I could not run her every day," said Voyles of Whowell, who is lactose intolerant. "If we would have kept going that same process she would always be hurt. You have to hold her back, and you can't hold someone back if you want them to be good.

"So we had to find an avenue for her to be an aggressive person and attack things without putting stress on her body."

And Whowell found that avenue in swimming. As a sophomore she competed on the Mustang swimming team while rehabbing her hips.

Last season Voyles developed an alternative training schedule for Whowell that would limit her running. He increased her workload this season.

Many days Whowell will do 45 minutes on the stationary bike then hit the pool for 45 minutes of training, whether it is running in the pool with weights or swimming.

"When you don't run all the time you have to find a way to match up that level of not only intensity, but the amount of time you spend doing it," added Voyles of the cross training.

"I don't want to look back and have any regrets," said Whowell of her alternative training. "I just want to work really hard and put everything I have into it."

Whowell also found another avenue for her aggression this summer when she finished in third place in the 2,000-meter steeplechase at the National Junior Olympic Championships in Omaha, Neb.

Whowell was a hurdler in middle school, so the combination of distance running and hurdling fit her well.

Voyles uncle even built a steeple barrier for Whowell's preparation.

"She's such an athlete and it works out the right distance," said Voyles, "You have to have an aggressive personality and she does."

Whowell wasn't feeling too aggressive on Sept. 15 at the Libertyville Invite. The senior finished a respectable 22nd but was facing another setback with an ear, eye and throat infection.

But that kind of obstacle is nothing new for Whowell, who continues to search for the combination of elements for a trip to Peoria and the Class 3A state championship race.

"Right now I just want to get better," said Whowell. "Just start performing and having my workouts show. My ultimate goal is to make it to state and be all-state.

"Every obstacle I get just makes me want it that much more. I don't want to back down."

Sounds like Whowell is on the right road.