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5/3
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<!-- ARTICLE HEADLINE --><!--HEADLINE--> It's Miller time for Detroit-Mercy
By DAVE WEIDIG
Sports Editor
<!-- ARTICLE BODYTEXT --> <!--ARTICLE TEXT--> ZANESVILLE - Megan Miller's mom was a little leery, sending her daughter off to a college in that "state up north."
"I won't even walk on the grass in Michigan, unless I have a cheap pair of shoes I don't care about," said Brenda Miller, who has an Ohio State shrine in her home. "I'll only walk on the concrete or asphalt. When we were in Belle Island (Mich.) for the Junior Olympics, I made Kent (her husband) carry me. And he did."
This was one offer, however, the Miller family couldn't refuse. The versatile Zanesville High School track star, who has 12 varsity letters between track, girls soccer, swimming and cross country, has signed a national letter of intent to run track and continue her education at Division I Detroit-Mercy.
"I told her I wouldn't wear the (school shirt) if it had the name Michigan in," Brenda Miller quipped. "I'm going to buy a cheap pair of shoes and keep them in a plastic bag in the van for when we go up there."In the end, however, Megan Miller was sold on competing at the Division I level for a smaller school. Detroit-Mercy's Titans are in the Horizon League with schools like Wright State, Youngstown State, Butler and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She actually considered Youngstown State and Wright State, along with Akron and Kent State. But she plans to go into nursing (her mom is a registered nurse at Genesis), and Detroit has a state of the art nursing complex.
"The whole complex is only about a year old," Kent Miller said. "There are only 1,900 full-time students on campus; it's not much larger than Muskingum. And only 800 live on campus."
"At the bigger Division I schools, it seems like you're just a number," Megan Miller said. "Here, I'll get more one-on-one with the teachers. The team is real close-knit, so you get to know everyone. It's a much better transition for me."
"Between academics and athletics, she only has to pay for meals," ZHS head track coach Herb Fitzer said of Miller's impressive financial package. "She's our fifth Division I girls track athlete," joining Erika Goines and Keturah Lofton (Ohio State), and Crystal Goldsmith and Allison Lawyer (Akron).
She'll likely run middle distance for the Titans. The 800 meters is her specialty, with a personal record of 2:21.3 last year, but she's also capable of sprinting.
"She has a good combination of speed and endurance," says Fitzer, who has also coached Miller in cross country and swimming. "The last two track seasons, she's been all business. She's very focused and as mentally tough as anyone I've had. She has the potential to be very successful in the Horizon League."
Fitzer called Miller "a hybrid on any given day."
"She's run a :12.3 split in the 400 relay, and did 59 seconds in the 1600 relay at the county meet," he pointed out.
Her dad, an assistant track coach at ZHS who has helped coach his daughter since middle school, said they have intentionally "undertrained" Megan through the years so they didn't hurt her legs.
"We used to only do 10 miles a week, which is pretty low," he said. "Normally, it's 30 or 40. We've bumped up the mileage and intensity; that's why her times are coming down. At mid-season, she's where she was at the end of the season last year."
Miller's best time this season is 2:23.2, and no one has come within 50 meters of her in the 800.
"My 800 time has come down every race," she said. "I want to go to the state in the 800, and I think our 400 relay can get there, too."
"They didn't train me with a lot of miles, so I didn't get burned out," Miller added. "I've gotten by on a lot of pure athletic ability, with my swimming and soccer. I didn't run cross country the last two seasons, but I'll be putting in a lot of miles this summer.
"I'll probably be focusing on the 400, 600 and 800 in college, and I like that, because you have to think real fast and keep your focus. My mind tends to wander in the longer distances."
Fitzer says she'll be getting an excellent coach in Detroit-Mercy head coach Guy Murray, who has recruited her since last year and who specializes in middle distance and distance runners. "She'll have a full-time coach, which I haven't been able to do," he said.
"She kind of undertrained, which is good because my system builds you up as you go; you want to peak your senior year," Coach Murray said Tuesday. "A lot of times, you'll have kids come in who have peaked in high school.
"She's a good athlete and we're excited to have her," he added. "We're graduating our top middle distance runner. She's right at that level where we've had a lot of people come in with potential, and we've had a real good run of girls in those events. You can never have too many middle distance runners."
5/3
<!-- MAIN CONTENT --> <!-- LEADERBOARD AD -->
<!-- ARTICLE HEADLINE --><!--HEADLINE--> It's Miller time for Detroit-Mercy
By DAVE WEIDIG
Sports Editor
<!-- ARTICLE BODYTEXT --> <!--ARTICLE TEXT--> ZANESVILLE - Megan Miller's mom was a little leery, sending her daughter off to a college in that "state up north."
"I won't even walk on the grass in Michigan, unless I have a cheap pair of shoes I don't care about," said Brenda Miller, who has an Ohio State shrine in her home. "I'll only walk on the concrete or asphalt. When we were in Belle Island (Mich.) for the Junior Olympics, I made Kent (her husband) carry me. And he did."
This was one offer, however, the Miller family couldn't refuse. The versatile Zanesville High School track star, who has 12 varsity letters between track, girls soccer, swimming and cross country, has signed a national letter of intent to run track and continue her education at Division I Detroit-Mercy.
"I told her I wouldn't wear the (school shirt) if it had the name Michigan in," Brenda Miller quipped. "I'm going to buy a cheap pair of shoes and keep them in a plastic bag in the van for when we go up there."In the end, however, Megan Miller was sold on competing at the Division I level for a smaller school. Detroit-Mercy's Titans are in the Horizon League with schools like Wright State, Youngstown State, Butler and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She actually considered Youngstown State and Wright State, along with Akron and Kent State. But she plans to go into nursing (her mom is a registered nurse at Genesis), and Detroit has a state of the art nursing complex.
"The whole complex is only about a year old," Kent Miller said. "There are only 1,900 full-time students on campus; it's not much larger than Muskingum. And only 800 live on campus."
"At the bigger Division I schools, it seems like you're just a number," Megan Miller said. "Here, I'll get more one-on-one with the teachers. The team is real close-knit, so you get to know everyone. It's a much better transition for me."
"Between academics and athletics, she only has to pay for meals," ZHS head track coach Herb Fitzer said of Miller's impressive financial package. "She's our fifth Division I girls track athlete," joining Erika Goines and Keturah Lofton (Ohio State), and Crystal Goldsmith and Allison Lawyer (Akron).
She'll likely run middle distance for the Titans. The 800 meters is her specialty, with a personal record of 2:21.3 last year, but she's also capable of sprinting.
"She has a good combination of speed and endurance," says Fitzer, who has also coached Miller in cross country and swimming. "The last two track seasons, she's been all business. She's very focused and as mentally tough as anyone I've had. She has the potential to be very successful in the Horizon League."
Fitzer called Miller "a hybrid on any given day."
"She's run a :12.3 split in the 400 relay, and did 59 seconds in the 1600 relay at the county meet," he pointed out.
Her dad, an assistant track coach at ZHS who has helped coach his daughter since middle school, said they have intentionally "undertrained" Megan through the years so they didn't hurt her legs.
"We used to only do 10 miles a week, which is pretty low," he said. "Normally, it's 30 or 40. We've bumped up the mileage and intensity; that's why her times are coming down. At mid-season, she's where she was at the end of the season last year."
Miller's best time this season is 2:23.2, and no one has come within 50 meters of her in the 800.
"My 800 time has come down every race," she said. "I want to go to the state in the 800, and I think our 400 relay can get there, too."
"They didn't train me with a lot of miles, so I didn't get burned out," Miller added. "I've gotten by on a lot of pure athletic ability, with my swimming and soccer. I didn't run cross country the last two seasons, but I'll be putting in a lot of miles this summer.
"I'll probably be focusing on the 400, 600 and 800 in college, and I like that, because you have to think real fast and keep your focus. My mind tends to wander in the longer distances."
Fitzer says she'll be getting an excellent coach in Detroit-Mercy head coach Guy Murray, who has recruited her since last year and who specializes in middle distance and distance runners. "She'll have a full-time coach, which I haven't been able to do," he said.
"She kind of undertrained, which is good because my system builds you up as you go; you want to peak your senior year," Coach Murray said Tuesday. "A lot of times, you'll have kids come in who have peaked in high school.
"She's a good athlete and we're excited to have her," he added. "We're graduating our top middle distance runner. She's right at that level where we've had a lot of people come in with potential, and we've had a real good run of girls in those events. You can never have too many middle distance runners."
