Katherine Keating is on her two-week break from running after her second straight sensational season as North Jersey’s top distance runner.
But that doesn’t mean that the Ridgewood junior is totally taking it easy during her break.
“I’m working on a team project in our HOSA (Health Occupations Student Association) club and another project in the applied engineering club,” said Keating, the North Jersey Female Athlete of the Week, presented by HSS. “In HOSA, we’re creating a lesson plan in health education, and in the engineering club, we’re trying to build a water bottle with a reverse osmosis filter to make it healthier to use.”
And if that’s not enough to keep her busy during her running break, she’s running a club with Maroon track teammates Riley Lubkemann and Hunter Witham called Letters for Rose, writing and delivering letters to people in senior living.
So while her legs and feet may be resting, Keating’s brain and hands will stay sharp. Then she’ll ramp up again to attack the only season that hasn’t quite lived up to Keating’s high standards: the spring.
Iron issues have prevented the Ridgewood standout from matching her amazing fall and winter feats, which include a fifth-place finish in last November’s Cross-Country State Meet of Champions, leading Ridgewood to its first Group 4 state title in more than 25 years, three indoor track group titles, a Bergen County record-breaking 3,200 meter performance to take third at the indoor SMOC and a recent clocking in the mile at Nike Indoor Nationals that left her one-fourth of a second from the county record in that event.
Hopefully, Keating has found the solution. She takes her prescribed iron pills, eats red meat (she prefers her steak well done), eats a lot of spinach and a lot of dark chocolate.
Sounds pretty good.
“It can get really hot in the spring and it’s harder to keep my readings up,” said Keating, who takes regular blood tests to check her levels. “I was happy with my race at Nationals last spring.”
After a decent pair of races at states, 5:01.72 (for third) at groups and 5:03.02 (for 11th at the Meet of Champions), both times slower than she had run in the indoor state meets, Keating ended her 2026 spring with a brilliant 3:34.13 1,200 leg in the distance medley, fourth among the 52 schools entered from across the country. The Maroons finished 11th in 12:00.78, sixth fastest in Bergen history.
She’s hoping for even more this spring.
“She’s worked very hard to be in that top echelon of distance runners in the state of New Jersey, which right now might have the most depth of any state in the country,” winter track head coach Josh Saladino said.
Keating regularly competes against Union Catholic juniors Paige Sheppard, Sophia Thompson and Cayleigh Kaiser, Ocean Township junior Leah Starkey and a plethora of other state stars who have grabbed several national titles and lots of attention.
“I love it that there are so many fast girls in the state,” Keating said. “We all push each other and it really helps me. I’m inspired by them.”
“Katherine has that killer instinct that is her biggest strength,” Ridgewood distance coach Patrick Ryan said. “But it can also be her biggest weakness because you can’t hammer all the time.”
“That’s a hard thing to learn but she’s gotten a lot more consistent in learning to know when she should put the hammer down and when she doesn’t have to. She’s certainly matured and certainly has the potential to be even better.”
All that’s left is for a great spring to follow a great fall and winter.
Katherine Keating
Sport: Indoor track
School: Ridgewood
Class: Junior. Age: 17
Accomplishment: Set a Bergen County record in the 3,200 meters at the State Meet of Champions, finishing third in 10:24.25, two seconds faster than the previous mark.
Also nominated: Caroline Ognibene of Old Tappan for indoor track.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Bergen Record Female Athlete of the Week: Katherine Keating, Ridgewood
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