In his short time as a member of the Lehigh track and field team, freshman pole vaulter Conor Reilly has taken home six victories.
In his first-ever collegiate meet, Reilly took the win against Lafayette with a mark of 4.72m. He’s continued his success after each meet, winning every single one he’s competed in.
Reilly set a personal record with a mark of 4.90m at the Bucknell Invitational on April 11.
Despite not practicing in the fall, Reilly trained like he would have a season in the spring.
“I was acting like I knew there was going to be a season, and it wouldn’t hurt if I trained as hard as I did, and the season didn’t come to fruition,” Reilly said.
Freshman Christian Tackett, a hurdler/sprinter on the track team, said Reilly’s willingness to pay attention to minor details is what sets him apart.
“He (Reilly) does anything to be a step ahead of the competition,” Tackett said. ““Whether it be completely monitoring his diet, extra hours in the weight room, whatever it might be, he’s always one step ahead of the guy in front of him.”
A key component of Reilly’s success is his willingness to work hard on his fitness and take advice from the coaching staff.
He said he’s learned to grip a lot lower on the pole than much of his competition, so he’s trying to get stronger and faster.
Sophomore pole vaulter Louis Logsdail echoed those sentiments when he described how he quickly adapted to the strenuous college workout program the team goes through.
“Generally, college workouts are a big shift and hard on freshman’s bodies, but Conor (Reilly) was able to tie his PR at his first meet, which you don’t see very often,” Logsdail said.
Reilly’s performances helped contribute to Lehigh’s second and fourth place finishes in the Lehigh Happy Easter Race and the Bucknell Quad meet.
Freshman high jumper Eli Aaronson highlighted Reilly’s drive to win.
“He (Reilly) is very competitive,” Aaronson said. “Even when we are playing spikeball, he’s going for gold.”
For Reilly, the highlight of his season has not been his personal victories, but the team-building relationship on and off the track.
“I have a really great pole vaulting partner Louis Logsdail who serves almost as a second coach,” Reilly said.
On May 1, Reilly will be attempting to cap his remarkable freshman season by vaulting to a Patriot League Championship.
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