The achievements of Andover's Moira Cronin are still a bit hard to comprehend for her mother, Kate Miller.
"It's pretty impressive," said Miller. "I never thought I would be Googling my daughter's name and seeing thousands of results on her accomplishments."
These days, it seems like everyone on the track scene is buzzing about the work by Cronin, the budding Golden Warriors superstar.
"I feel like this kind of happened all of a sudden," said Cronin with a laugh. "I don't feel like I'm that good and, all of a sudden, I'm No. 1. I look at myself and ask, 'When did this happen?'"
Cronin literally jumped to the top of the track world on Jan. 20, when she recorded a stunning leap of 5 feet, 10 inches in a dual meet against Billerica.
That jump was good for a tie for the best jump in the United States this winter.
"It's not a surprise to us," said Andover coach Peter Comeau. "Moira is definitely big-time. She's the first national leader I've coached. High jumpers have to be a special breed. It requires a certain demeanor."
Cronin very nearly missed a shot at history that day.
"I wasn't confident," said Cronin. "It was a dual meet, I didn't have spikes and my foot hurt from banging it on the floor. I didn't want to be injured for the bigger meets, so I thought about stopping at 5-6 for the day. But all of a sudden it was just one big jump after another big jump and the height just kept getting higher. I couldn't believe it."
Once the bar hit 5-9, Cronin flew over with room to spare. So the bar was raised to 5-10, and Cronin once again was up to the task.
"I let out a little bit of a shriek," Cronin said. "I put my hands on my head and said, 'I can't believe this happened.' Then I got mobbed by everyone and got a lot of hugs. I was tied for 23rd in the country last season, and I thought that was unbelievable."
It's been a steady rise for Cronin. After a promising freshman season (jumping 5-0), last winter she broke Cindy Surrett's school record of 5-4 that had stood since 1982, and by the end of the 2009 spring season she had won All-States and set an area record with a stellar 5-9. So expectations were understandably high for this season.
"In the first meet of this year Moira jumped a 5-8, which is a huge jump in general — let alone in the beginning of the season," said Miller. "We knew it had the potential to be a great season and we were able to see that she ranked as one of the top five high school girls."
Cronin's 5-10 places her in a tie for tops among U.S. schoolgirls with seniors Lacey Shuman (Maryvale Prep, Md.), Amina Smith (Patuxent, Md.) and Emily Kianka (Hopewell Valley, N.J.).
While she has the height — standing at 6-feet tall — and the speed to excel in the high jump, it is Cronin's mindset and tremendous personality that have drawn plenty of compliments.
"She handles this so well," said Comeau. "She says she's nervous, but she can handle it. If I were running at that bar with everyone looking at me, I'd be terrified. But it's her makeup. She doesn't let high jump dominate her life."
Miller, a former track athlete herself, agreed with that assessment.
"Moira is pretty grounded," she said. "She seems to be taking this success in stride and not letting it go to her head. She doesn't appear to get anxious or nervous when she is jumping. She really gets in a zone. Moira puts more pressure on herself academically."
While she's just halfway through her junior season, Cronin has already drawn interest from a number of top colleges.
"I've talked to Duke," said Comeau. "And I have e-mailed back and forth with the University of North Carolina and we have a contact at Penn State in Colleen Shannon. We're looking ACC. Hopefully after Nationals it will be narrowed down."
But has life changed for Cronin since her epic jump?
"There's a lot of pressure being first in the nation," she said. "There's expectations that you are going to do it every time. It's a little stressful. Now I feel like I have to hit at least 5-9 at every meet. But it gives me that little extra oomph."
The Moira Cronin File
Age: 16
Height: 6-feet
Year: Junior
Record-breaker: On Jan. 20, recorded a 5-10 in the high jump, tying for the best in the nation so far in 2010. It also broke her own school and Eagle-Tribune area record.
Jumping to success: Last spring, swept the high jump at the Andover Boosters, MVCs, EMass Division 1 meet and All-States. Jumped an area-best 5-9.
No one-event wonder: Is also a standout in the 50 hurdles, running a 7.2 in a win over Billerica. Tallied 37 kills and 28 blocks for volleyball team that finished 20-3-0 this season.
Overcoming adversity: Has worn hearing aids since the fifth grade due to being partially hearing impaired.
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