Roz Mikulak and Brenna Dahlgren lead Honesdale's girls varsity track & field team

HONESDALE — The Hornets may be struggling a bit in Lackawanna League girls track & field action, but two talented student-athletes are putting up big numbers in multiple individual events.

Honesdale’s Roz Mikulak and Brenna Dahlgren are both battle-tested veterans and each is peaking at the perfect time as the season’s biggest meets draw closer.

Mikulak recently closed out a quest she’s been on since freshman year, setting a brand new school record in the pole vault.

“I’m so happy to see Roz finally break that record,” coach Paul Russick said. "Roz is a great all-round athlete and now she can focus on the goals she has as we inch closer to the postseason.”

Dahlgren is one of the most successful distance runners in school history. She’s a district medalist in both track and cross country who just posted personal bests in the 1,600 and 3,200.

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“What a great cross country and track and field career Brenna has had,” Russick said. “Watching her set goals and then work incredibly hard to achieve them has been so great to watch."

Weather permitting, Honesdale will be back on the track this week with a league meet versus Scranton High School. Action gets underway at 4:15 p.m. Monday afternoon at the Daniel J. O’Neill Sports Complex.

Milestone moment

Mikulak is a talented multi-sport athlete who also excels in field hockey and girls wrestling. She’s headed to Slippery Rock University in the fall to continue her academic and athletic career.

The versatile senior is enjoying another stellar spring season, competing in the 100-meter dash, shot put and javelin. However, her marquee event is the pole vault in which she set a brand new school record during the meet against Wallenpaupack Area.

Mikulak cleared the bar at 9 feet, 1 inch, breaking her own mark of 9 feet set multiple times in the past two years and shared with Abby Firmstone.

“I am super excited and relieved that I finally broke the record,” she said. “And I’m looking forward to breaking it again this season with a better height.”

Mikulak burst onto the varsity track and field scene as a freshman, grabbing the attention of then-coach Pete Casazza with her natural athleticism and fierce competitive spirit. It was Casazza who first suggested Mikulak consider taking up pole vaulting for the first time.

“Coach Casazza pulled me up to the varsity and encouraged me to give it a try,” Mikulak said. “My sophomore year I tied the record for the first time at districts. Ever since then I’ve been really eager to break it.”

Mikulak’s milestone moment came Tuesday afternoon at Paupack when she finally soared over the bar at 9-1 and etched her name in the Hornets record book. She also powered her way to second-place finishes in the 100, shot and javelin.

And while Honesdale suffered a lopsided 108-42 loss to the Buckhorns, Russick is encouraged by what he saw from his senior star.

“Regardless of the sport or the event, Roz just has that special ‘it’ factor,” he said. “She’s the kind of all-round athlete who only comes around once in a great while. Roz would excel at anything you throw at her.”

Eyes on the prize

While Mikulak was busy re-writing the Hornet record book, Dahlgren quietly went about the business of dominating the distance events once again.

She’s coming off a pair of Top 5 finishes at last year’s District 2 AAA Championships, finishing fourth in the 1,600 (5:23.93) and fifth in the 3,200 (11:20.38).

This spring, Dahlgren has already set new personal bests in both events. On Tuesday at Paupack, she jetted her way to a first-place finish in the 1600 with a time of 5:13, then won the 3,200 at 11:13.

“My senior season has really been flying by,” Dahlgren said. “I’m very happy with how well I’ve been competing so far and I’m super excited for the bigger races coming up. I’m definitely looking forward to testing myself even more.”

For his part, Russick believes that his top runner is only beginning to scratch the surface of her potential here in late April.

“Brenna is such a competitor,” he said. “As far as I’m concerned, this is just the start of it all. Brenna’s work ethic and her competitive nature are going to lead to even more success as she strives for her postseason goals.”

Dahlgren is headed to Lehigh University in the fall where she will keep running and also pursue studies in education, psychology and English. But right now she is laser-focused on the task at hand.

“I am definitely setting bigger goals for myself the rest of the season,” she said. “I want to keep lowering my times as much as I can and I also really want to qualify for states in both events.”

Down the stretch

While Monday’s meet at Scranton signals the end of Honesdale’s Lackawanna League campaign, the track season is far from over.

The Hornets will return to the Electric City on May 2 to compete in the 2024 Jordan Relays. Then, they’ll head back to Memorial Stadium once again for this year’s Robert Spagna Memorial Championships on May 7.

The following week, Russick’s teams will lay it all on the line at the District 2 Meet. All AA and AAA schools will compete May 13-14 at Scranton Memorial Stadium.

“I’m definitely looking for us to finish out the season strong,” Russick said. “We’re having a lot of success at the individual level, especially with Roz and Brenna. They’re two really good ones and now that the weather has finally broken I’m expecting big things.”

This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: Honesdale's Mikulak and Dahlgren star in Lackawanna League track action