The Return of Ryley Howard
CORAL GABLES, Fla.– After suffering a stress fracture in her left tibia in 2018, sophomore Ryley Howard’s main priority this year is to stay healthy the entire season.
After competing in the first three races last year and being the first female runner to finish for the Canes each time, Howard’s injury left her sidelined for the final three races of her freshman campaign. Howard finished the cross country season, as well as both the indoor and outdoor track seasons in the training room.
“I definitely took my recovery seriously,” Howard said. “I was in the training room every day doing physical therapy last year. I think just being diligent about that, then also keeping my aerobic fitness up and getting healthier while I was injured, was a huge key for me this season. As far as strengthening and working on building my endurance while I was injured, it really helped once I started running again because it was easier for me jump back into where I was before my injury.”
The long hours and therapy seems to have paid off for Howard as the Arlington, Va., native was again, the top female finisher for the Canes in the 2019 FAU Invitational. Howard finished the women’s 5k with a time of 18:36.09, nearly 10 seconds faster than her time freshman year. The preparation and recovery was just what Howard needed to bounce back this season.
“I picked back up exactly where I left off and I feel like I can just keep going up because I don’t feel like I’ve missed a beat,” Howard said.
With new courses, a new head coach and a new team environment, Howard is already setting big goals for not just herself, but the team as well. This weekend’s race at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational will be a good point of reference for the Canes as numerous ACC schools will be there competing.
Howard’s goal for the weekend is all team-oriented and wants to be able to encourage her teammates to be successful.
“I think I just want to push the team. The last time we competed, we had a really big time gap between the top girls, so I think trying to get everyone to band together and stay closer to the front is really our goal to finish stronger as a team,” Howard said. “We’re pretty much competing against all the teams that are going to be there at ACCs, so we want to prove that we can hang and not be in the bottom.”
With Howard continuing to improve off her curtailed freshman season, she and new distance coach, Cody Halsey, have big goals for the sophomore’s future. Howard’s drive and determination helped her get back on the course, but she is not stopping there. With the help of Halsey, Howard is striving to break an 18-minute 5k and get her time down prior to ACCs.
“I think we’ve set goals that are kind of a reach for me right now, but I trust her completely and I believe she’ll get me to exactly where I need to be and where she wants me to be,” Howard said. “I have full trust in her.”
Halsey believes that she has a true leader among her team and is just waiting for Howard to grow more into that position. With just two more races before ACCs, this weekend is all about competing for Howard and Miami.
“We have the opportunity to line up against a handful of teams in our conference and I want her to get an idea of where we want to be in November,” Halsey said. “I want the team to enjoy racing and gain confidence from all the hard work they’ve been putting in. I’d like them to run for each other and themselves. Mostly, I want them to take advantage of the opportunity to race. You learn a lot about yourself as an athlete and competitor in those moments. I’m excited to watch them find those things out.”
