By Dan Guttenplan
Alanna Poretta first started running as a fifth-grader with her father, Anthony, by her side.
Seven years later, he can no longer keep pace.
Poretta, a senior at Pentucket Regional High, captured the Cape Ann League Championships title on Saturday, placing first among 81 runners. She completed the 3-mile course in 18:36, beating second-place finisher Alison Lanois of Hamilton-Wenham by 54 seconds.
Poretta now only runs with her father when she's putting in a few easy miles beyond her standard 60-70 mile-per-week workload.
"He can't really keep up, but I still like running with him," Poretta said. "We're really close, and we always have fun running together."
Poretta will conclude the most successful cross country season of her high school career in the next month. Her final meets will include the EMass. Division 3 Championships Nov. 14, the Mass. All-State Meet Nov. 21 and the Foot Locker Cross Country Northeast Regional Championships in Long Island, N.Y., Nov. 28.
Poretta, who maintains a 3.66 GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society, made an immediate impact on the Pentucket program as a freshman in 2006. She placed eighth in the CAL Championships that year, before adding a fifth-place finish as a sophomore and a fourth-place finish as a junior. Pentucket coach Todd Ruland noticed a new-found intensity in his senior captain this fall.
"She wasn't happy with her past state meet performances so she really wanted to prove to herself that she could do this," Ruland said. "She came into the season stronger than anyone in the state."
Poretta proved as much at the McIntyre Invitational on Sept. 19 at Franklin Park. She placed first at the statewide competition, besting the second-place finisher by 40 seconds.
"She gave herself an incredible head start on the rest of the field," Ruland said. "And she hasn't rested on her laurels. Each win makes her all the more determined."
Poretta said she has yet to celebrate a single victory this season even though she is undefeated to date.
"This was the plan," Poretta said. "I worked hard all summer for this, so it's not a surprise. This is what I'm supposed to be doing."
Poretta made the transition from being a top-five CAL finisher to a force on a statewide level last spring when she placed first in the mile at the EMass. Division 3 Championships. Pentucket outdoor track coach Steve Derro noticed Poretta's newfound finishing kick in that race when she was tied with Hingham's Shauna McNiff and Oliver Ames' Jenna Davidner with 300 meters to go.
"When I saw her go by at that point, I saw the look on her face," Derro said. "She knew she was going to win. Her confidence started to build after that. Now, she really looks forward to big races."
The following weekend, Poretta broke the five-minute barrier in the mile for the first time, posting a time of 4:57 at the Mass. All-State Meet. Poretta said the sub-five minute mile is her pinnacle performance as a high school athlete to date.
"I set that goal for my entire career, so it was huge to break it," Poretta said. "Now I have to set other goals."
