PHILADELPHIA, Penn. — If there was ever a high school track and field resume, it might belong to Nate Assa of Marblehead High.
This past weekend, at New Balance Nationals on Franklin Field, Assa, a senior, set a personal-best time of 14:25.19 (silver medal) in the 5,000-meter race.
This was an improvement of 14:32.20, according to Coach Nolan Raimo.
“It was a historic race with the national champion, Noah Bontrager of Indiana, winning the race in a new meet-record time of 14:20.89,” Raimo said. “Nate was close behind in 14:25.19. It was a well tempo’d race with Nate running 4:38 for the first mile, 4:39 for the second mile, and 4:33 for the final mile. Often, we see championship races come down to tactics, but this race was a shootout from the beginning with a strong pace from the start, and it was evident by the mile splits. As the race progressed, runners were dropped from the pack – lap after lap.”
It wasn’t easy, either. Raimo said it was “a stormy day . . . at the mecca of track and field in America.”
But that wasn’t all.
“There were two weather delays due to thunderstorms, which pushed Nate’s race back about two hours,” Raimo said. “Under the lights of Franklin Field, Nate completed the unthinkable: runner-up national champion, and he is now a two-time All American.”
Assa ended his high school career as a two-time All-American, two-time New England champion, and two-time state champion. His final 800-meter race was 2:11.52, while his final 400-meter race was 62.12.
