Clancy and Song set the pace for all-around excellence

Imagine going through a whole day of school, running three to five miles, and then returning home for several hours of homework.

That about describes a typical day in the life for recent CHS graduates Catherine Song and Mark Clancy, two of the school’s most accomplished and respected student-athletes.

Mark Clancy and Catherine Song display their Hockomock League Scholar Athlete awards.

Clancy and Song were Canton High School’s top male and female distance runners, and both were honored as recipients of the prestigious Hockomock League Scholar Athlete Award. But their achievements didn’t stop there. Clancy was one of the senior leaders on the New England champion CHS math team and participated in the Junior Statesmen of America. Song served on the Student Council, volunteered to mentor freshmen as a Link Leader, played flute in the school band, and is an accomplished classical pianist.

Both Song and Clancy have been classmates since the first grade, but neither started their running careers until they entered CHS. Song ran all three seasons (cross country, indoor and outdoor track), and Clancy, who started out playing other sports, decided to switch to distance running his junior year.

CHS Athletic Director Danny Erickson said the Scholar Athlete Award has been presented by the Hockomock League for more than 20 years and honors a graduating male and female student from each of the league schools who excel athletically and academically.

“It’s a pretty select group,” noted Erickson. “It’s difficult to select just two of our student-athletes for an award like this. So many of our Bulldog athletes are among the top students in their class … However, Mark and Catherine really had that amazingly rare balance of being exceptional on the track and in the classroom. Both are great representatives of CHS and our town.”

Anna Amico, head track coach for the winter and spring teams, echoed Erickson’s remarks while praising both their work ethic and leadership skills.

“Mark is an athlete that pushes himself every day to improve … and his hard work paid off as he got better with each season,” she said. “He is the kind of athlete that pushed others around him to be better because of his work ethic and dedication.”

Amico described Song as “one of the top distance runners to come through Canton High School.”

“Her excellence in the classroom and on the track are solely due to her diligence and dedication,” she said. “Like Mark, she pushed her teammates to be better by upping the level of competition on race days and in practice.”

Head cross country coach David Hiltz also raved about the talent and dedication of the two runners.

“Mark is one of the best runners I’ve coached,” he said of Clancy. “Not only does he have the work ethic and the physical gifts, but he has a high runner IQ … Mark was one of my first runners who really thought about running — who he is going against, what their time is, what he could do against them, where he needs to be for his mile splits, and the word that comes to mind is strategy.”

“Cat has an incredible drive and go-getter attitude,” said Hiltz. “She works so hard at everything she does, and that was demonstrated through her success both in cross country as well as her academics.”

Hiltz said Song’s talent as a runner was evident when she was a freshman, although she had not yet fully committed herself to the sport.

“She couldn’t run in one of the postseason meets because she was injured in a hockey game earlier in the week,” recalled Hiltz, who was then the assistant coach. “It was said to her, ‘You could be great [but] you need to be committed to this.’ Needless to say, she chose running and the rest, as they say, is history.”

Song herself said it was during that freshman cross country season when she discovered her potential as a distance runner. She also loved the camaraderie of the team. “I was kind of shy, but running opened my eyes,” she said. “I got to know a lot of good people.”

Song went on to become a multi-time league all star and all-state participant and emerged as one of the top mile and two-mile runners in the Hockomock League. She also occasionally competed in the 800m and was an integral part of the 4×800 relay.

A typical week for Song consisted of a five-mile jog on the first day; a workout on the hills with six 400-meter runs on day two; a recovery run of three to four miles on day three; a track workout of six to 10 400-meter runs on day four; a mile run prior to a meet; and a long run on a Saturday or post meet. She tried to rest completely on Sunday.

She feels that the CHS track program has come a long way under Amico, who she said has a “real passion for track” and has fostered a supportive and friendly environment.

Song believes the girls team can compete for a league championship but must take a few more steps. “I think the team as a whole has to have the motivation and the desire to want to be the best, and that starts with summer training,” she said.

Song is headed to Princeton in the fall to study chemistry and environmental studies. She plans to run on a club team and will continue to compete in local races and might try the Boston Marathon.

In addition to the Scholar Athlete Award, Song was also honored at graduation as the female recipient of the Paul Matthews Cup, which recognizes excellence in scholarship, athletics, and service to the community. She credits her academic success to a very structured schedule and a motivation to be “as good as possible.”

As for Clancy, he too strived for greatness both as a student and as an athlete, and he is glad that he made the decision to switch to cross country and track.

“It is the best group of kids,” he said. “We are very supportive of each other. There is not a bad kid in the bunch.”

Clancy started at CHS playing soccer, basketball and baseball, but after suffering an ankle injury he decided to try distance running. His interest also stemmed from his older brother Joe, who was active on several CHS track teams.

Clancy soon turned his focus to improving as a runner and made quite a name for himself this past year, earning an all-league honorable mention in cross country while placing eighth in the two-mile in both the winter and spring MIAA division championship meets.

Clancy will be attending Boston College, where he plans to study finance. He has not yet decided whether he will try out for the cross country team but definitely plans to continue running and hopes to enter several 5K races. He also hopes to play a number of intramural sports.

Clancy said the key to his success was time management, forcing himself to complete his assignments, and catching up on sleep during the weekends.

He has great admiration for Song since they ran together a lot at CHS. “Cat is incredible, amazing at everything she does, and a very nice person,” he said. “She makes it look effortless, a natural.”

Song returned the compliment, calling Clancy “one of the nicest people I know, someone who does things on his own terms, a unique, goal-oriented, and also a very funny person.”

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Posted by Mike Berger on Jun 24 2016. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.