Record-setting Robinson was never afraid to try new things

By Ryan Lambert
Staff Writer

July 03, 2008 11:36 am

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Bree Robinson, at her core, is a quick and eager study.

She had never played soccer before coming to Pinkerton Academy, but she was fast, and that was only good enough to earn her a spot on the freshman team. By the time she was a sophomore, she was turning heads.

"At the beginning of her sophomore year, I said, 'Where did this girl come from?'" said coach Ken Najem. "She didn't even play for me when she was a freshman, then all of a sudden I was like, 'Wow, how did I miss her?' She was new to soccer and the program. It just took her three months to figure it out and she was off."

That sophomore year, she scored 19 goals and one assist and led the Astros to their first Class L final appearance since 1992. Not a bad way to start a varsity career. The next year, she scored 18 goals, and the year after that, she scored 13 and added four assists despite missing a number of games with an ankle injury and helped lead the eighth-seeded Astros to a state final. It's no surprise that she earned a soccer scholarship to the University of Hartford.

The winter of her sophomore year, it was suggested that she give indoor track a try. She was above average, says coach Ed Vaitones, but after that three-month trial, she was unstoppable.

"I could see she was fast from her first meet as a sophomore, so that came with the territory," said Vaitones. "But then halfway through the year, she said, 'Okay, let's try the long jump.' A lot of kids will balk at something new because it's risky to try and fail at something else."

That season, Robinson shockingly did not succeed at something.

"I thought I would excel in high jump for some odd reason," she said with a laugh. "I have really good height when I go up for head balls, so I figured I'd be good at the high jump. I wasn't. At all."

But that willingness to try brought out her breakthrough performance. It happened on a whim.

A week before the state heptathlon that spring, Vaitones asked if anyone wanted to give it a try, and Robinson was quick to volunteer. She had only competed in the 100- and 200-meter dashes and long jump, and tried the high jump. The hurdles, 400-meter run, 800-meter run, javelin or shot put were unfamiliar. She tried to cram a season of training into a week.

Said Robinson: "Honestly my coach and I going in were hoping for a top-10 finish."

Instead, Robinson finished second with 3,774 points, less than 200 behind the winner. She wasn't satisfied, though. The next year she easily won Class Ls in her three main events, then dominated the field at the heptathlon with a 4,113-point performance that set a state record. After that, she set her sights even higher.

"My goal was to set the state record for the heptathlon again," she said. "But at the Meet of Champions, I jammed my knee somehow and then the week after I caught a stomach flu that hit me right before that, and it was kind of out of the blue. I kind of coped with it and still came out with a pretty good performance."

Only pretty good. With two leg injuries and the flu limiting her training severely, she won with 3,993 points, just 120 worse than the previous year. But that's Bree Robinson, whose nonchalance about her epic achievements tends to be a little shocking even to those who know her best.

At this year's Class L championships, Robinson wanted to clear a lofty 19 feet in the long jump. The previous mark, which had stood for 31 years, was 18-83/4. During the event, coaches weren't allowed on the track's infield, so Vaitones could only watch from afar. He thought the jump looked pretty good, so when Robinson came walking over, he asked, "How was it?"

"Casually she just comes over and says, 'Oh it was 19-41/2,'" Vaitones laughed. "That was so extraordinary."

As much as her coaches valued her skill and athletic prowess, her leadership and willingness to sacrifice makes her next to unreplaceable.

"She's a great person," said Najem, who called Robinson a perfect athlete, the best he's ever coached in any sport. "We switched her from forward to defense and she was all for it and wanted to be a team player. That's the type of person she is off the field. On the field, she's a tiger. A totally different person. She always wants the edge and has the athletic ability and speed and physicality to do what she wants to do."

What separates Robinson from the rest is her love of whatever she's playing, and willingness to do anything to succeed at it.

"A lot of athletes get into a comfortable place, and that's fine," said Vaitones. "But working with her was so rewarding because of that desire to do something new."

Next year, she has to tackle college, her biggest new challenge in years. She says she wants to make a big impression at Hartford very quickly. Just give her three months.