O'Boyle's aggressive style well-suited to 800

HAMMOND -- Heeding his coach's advice, Bishop Noll senior Ian O'Boyle has been visualizing the biggest race of his life a lot this week.

"I might be thinking about it a little too much," said O'Boyle, who will compete in his second IHSAA Boys Track and Field State Finals on Friday.

"(Monday) during a test, I caught myself just thinking about the race."

O'Boyle could be forgiven for obsessing over the final race of his high school career. It's one thing to qualify for the state finals, which he did last year. It's another knowing you have a shot to win.

O'Boyle's winning time in the 800 meters at last week's Valparaiso Regional was the second fastest in the state. This from a guy who took 11th at state in the 1,600 last year.

"The 800 kind of came out of nowhere," he said. "Last year, I figured I'd run the mile again. And then I started running really good 800 times. And they kept getting better and better and I thought, 'Maybe this is my ticket.'"

O'Boyle had a seed time of 2:03.90 entering the Morton Sectional. He wound up winning in 1:57.22, which gave him the top seed at the regional. There O'Boyle again shaved several seconds off his personal best, winning in 1:55.07.

"My goal for the season was to get a high 1:56," O'Boyle said. "Now I'm looking at trying to potentially win state."

That would be a nice way to cap what has been an impressive senior season. Individually, O'Boyle has yet to lose in the 800, 1,600 or 3,200.

At the conference meet, he won the 1,600 and 3,200, and ran legs on the 1,600 and 3,200 relays. At the Morton Sectional, he won the 800 and 1,600, and ran a leg on the Warriors' winning 1,600 relay.

O'Boyle didn't run the 1,600 at the regional. He wanted to focus solely on the 800.

"Really, I think he could have gone (to state) in any of the events from the 400 on up," Bishop Noll coach Chris Nicolini said.

Nicolini figured O'Boyle had a better shot at medaling in the 800 than the 1,600, which features most of the state's premier distance runners. But the 800 is also better suited for O'Boyle's speed and brazen running style. In the regional, O'Boyle took the lead early and never gave it back.

"He's aggressive and very confident," Nicolini said.

O'Boyle's aggressiveness has only once backfired. Running the 800 at the indoor nationals last winter, he set out ahead of the pack and wound up being passed late in the race.

Of course, if he had it to do over, he wouldn't change his strategy a bit.

"That's just how I race," he said. "I've had people tell me that in college that can really get you in trouble, running out in front. But I still plan to be up there in a position to win (on Friday). I don't want to get boxed in. I don't want to run slower than my pace."

A seed time of 1:53.75 makes Pendleton's Nathan Hendershot the definitive favorite -- and the guy O'Boyle will be gunning for.

"I'm the type of athlete that loves to compete," he said. "If I see a guy in front of me, I'm going to want to beat him. I'm not going to let him have an easy win."

And this time around, O'Boyle won't be overwhelmed by the atmosphere.

"Last year, I felt like a deer in the headlights," he said. "I didn't have any goals except to go out there and run. This year, it's a little bit different. I know the state atmosphere, and I know what I can do. I'm definitely more focused."

Contact David Robb at 648-3122, drobb@post-trib.com or visit his blog at blogs.post-trib.com/robb