Once again, Noel Jancewicz was the exception to the rule.
As long-time observers of Robbinsville High track & field will note, Jancewicz did things during her four-year high school career that just didn’t seem possible.
This year, however, she was a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania. With tougher competition and a grueling Ivy League academic workload, reality was sure to hit when it came to her athletic achievements.
But where Jancewicz is concerned, success is reality.
Dealing with an extremely regimented schedule in which she had to squeeze the most out of every minute, not to mention an elbow issue that affected her javelin throwing as an RHS senior, all Jancewicz did was win the heptathlon at the Penn Relays in her first year of college.
Then, in mid-May, she was given the Quakers’ Most Valuable Freshman award.
“I think she did a really good job,” Penn head coach Steve Dolan said. “It’s always interesting. Since she was a star in high school, we knew she was a very good athlete. But it’s not as easy when you go to college. You’re adjusting to new kinds of training and competition, along with the academic pressures.
“To win the Penn Relays and to score high in the heptathlon in our (Ivy) League is impressive. She was also one of our top quarter-milers as well. She ran on our four by 400 team, and we made it back to the East Coast Championships.”
Jancewicz, who is always confident in her abilities, even surprised herself.
“Coming in I really didn’t have too many high expectations,” she said. “I heard so many people struggle their freshman year because they are struggling with all the changes in their life.
“I didn’t have a set goal, but at the Penn Relays I was hoping to score over 5,000 points. I was lucky I did, I was happy with that. And to win it. That was big. I never expected that.”
The same could be said for her post-season honor.
“The Freshman MVP award…I was not expecting that at all,” Jancewicz said. “We had a banquet, and I was really surprised when they announced it. It’s a big honor. We have a really good freshman class, a lot of talent. So I’m really excited for future.”
Jancewicz became just the third woman in Quakers’ history to win the Penn Relays heptathlon, and first since 2004. She became the fourth woman in school history to surpass 5,000 points, and her total of 5,035 is third on Penn’s all-time list.
Her standout freshman year started during the indoor season, when she finished third in the pentathlon at the indoor Heptagonal Championships, which is for the Ivy League title.
“I could have placed higher, but it could have been worse,” she said. “I was still happy with that. I scored 3,461, so I improved my score a lot from last year.”
The big question entering the outdoor season was with the javelin. Jancewicz had to shut it down last April due to pain.
“I wasn’t sure if I needed Tommy John Surgery or not, that’s why I stopped throwing it last year,” she said. “But just resting it and getting physical therapy worked, and it was fine. I was just so happy to be able to throw it. That was one of the most important things to me this year, was to be able to throw.
“I told the (Penn) coaches about it last year, and they were confident it would get better. A couple doctors weren’t sure, that’s why I was freaking out.”
Dolan added, “we weren’t sure where it would go with her this year. A lot of this year was working on her events and rehabbing so she could do the full heptathlon. That was part of the season progression, to see if it was realistic to do the heptathlon.”
She proved just how realistic it was with her victory.
On the first day, Jancewicz amassed 3,090 points by going 5-7 in the high jump, throwing the shot 39-9.5 and running the fastest 200 time of the day, as her 25.47 was a personal best. She started the day finishing third in the 100 hurdles in 15.30.
“I definitely could have had a better time running the hurdles,” she said. “I was a little better in that all season, so it freaked me out at the beginning.”
On day two, she fell behind by 81 points after finishing second in the long jump by a 1-foot, 1-inch. But she rallied and came up with the furthest javelin throw at 104-5. Still trailing by 31 entering the final event, Jancewicz won the 800 meters in 2:20.67—19 seconds ahead of the next finisher.
“My coach was telling me everything, so I knew what was going on as far as the score,” Jancewicz said. “To be honest, I don’t try to calm myself down in that situation. The nerves really help me. When the pressure is on I usually do perform. I kind of like it that way.
“I knew I had to beat the second-place girl by a certain time. When I crossed the line I had no idea how far that girl was behind me, and I turned around to see where she was. My coach showed me the scoreboard, and it was a big shock. It felt great, and I hope I can do it again. I’m hoping to get the school record. I was 100 points off.”
In the outdoor Heptagonal, Jancewicz was unhappy with her heptathlon finish, which was partly due to a tough day in the javelin.
“She was doing fine in everything else, but because she had limited practice in the javelin, she was throwing very conservatively,” Dolan said. “The only other meet she threw it was at the Penn Relays.
“She was throwing it pretty good, but it wasn’t turning over. The rule is, it has to hit point first, but hers was landing flat on the ground. She didn’t get a mark in that, but it kind of came down to limited practice and limited competition.”
Jancewicz still made her presence felt at the Heps, as she ran the second leg for the third-place four-by-400 relay team and took fifth in the high jump at 5-7.75. Although she did not finish in the top nine in the heptathlon, in the individual breakdown she took second in the 200 (25.35) and high jump (5-7.75), and fourth in the shot (36-9.50).
“I actually think a lot of the events could have been better,” she said. “I PRrd in two and shot was good. But I think all in all it could have been better.”
Dolan figured her attitude was predictable.
“She had a very good year,” the coach said. “Someone with her ability and her goals, she was frustrated at the Heps and she wants more. That’s how great competitors are. They want to improve.”
Jancewicz’s season is not quite over as she will accompany a combined team from Cornell and Penn to London to compete against Oxford and Cambridge from June 16 to July 1.
“She’s the top high jumper among the two schools so she will be a high jump participant,” Dolan said. “She’ll run the hurdles as well, maybe a few other things. She still has more to go this year.”
It has been a year of adjustment for Jancewicz. Unlike at Robbinsville, when she was pretty much locked into the same events each week, her events changed from week to week this season. Not to mention, the academics presented a challenge.
“The workload was a lot,” she said. “That was another thing during Heps. We were in finals week that was so hard. We had to compete Saturday and Sunday and then I had two finals Monday. I would study during the week, but crammed Sunday night.”
It was the kind of schedule that Jancewicz learned to adjust to as the year went along.
“I had to get used to squeezing in some studying or work between classes or before practice,” she said. “My practices were really long. On Mondays and Wednesdays, we would sometimes go five hours. Tuesday, Thursday and Friday they were just a little shorter. You really had to get the school work in when you could.”
As usual, Jancewicz was able to handle whatever came her way. It’s all part of making success a reality.
Robbinsville’s Noel Jancewicz throws the shotput at the Heptagonal meet this spring. Jancewicz won UPenn’s freshman MVP award this year.,
