But that doesn’t mean the Ridgewood junior is taking it easy during her break.
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“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. “At HOSA, we are creating a health education lesson plan, and in the engineering club, we are 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 runs a club with her Maroon track teammates Riley Lubkemann and Hunter Witham called Letters for Rose, writing and delivering letters to seniors.
So while his legs and feet are resting, Keating’s brain and hands will remain alert. Then he’ll ramp up again to attack the only season that hasn’t lived up to Keating’s high standards: spring.
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Iron issues have kept the Ridgewood standout from matching her incredible fall and winter feats, which include a fifth-place finish at last November’s State Cross-Country Meet of Champions, leading Ridgewood to its first Group 4 state title in more than 25 years, three indoor group titles, a record 3,200-meter performance in Bergen County to place third in the indoor SMOC, and a recent record in the mile at Nike Indoor Nationals which left her a quarter of a second off the county record in that event.
Hopefully, Keating has found the solution. He takes the iron pills he was prescribed, eats red meat (he prefers well-done steak), eats a lot of spinach and a lot of dark chocolate.
Sounds pretty good.
“It can be very hot in the spring and it’s harder to keep my readings up,” said Keating, who has regular blood tests to monitor her levels. “I was happy with my run at Nationals last spring.”
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After a couple of decent runs at states, 5:01.72 (for third place) in pools and 5:03.02 (for 11th at the Meet of Champions), both times slower than she had run at the indoor state meets, Keating finished her 2026 spring with a brilliant 3:34.13 in the 1200 legs in the medley distance, fourth among the 52 schools registered from all over the country. The Maroons finished 11th in 12:00.78, the sixth-fastest in Bergen history.
She hopes even more this spring.
“He has worked very hard to be in the upper echelon of distance runners in the state of New Jersey, which right now might have the greatest 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 host of other state stars who have garnered multiple national titles and plenty of attention.
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“I love that there are so many fast girls in the state,” Keating said. “We all push each other and that really helps me. They inspire me.”
“Katherine has that killer instinct that is her biggest strength,” Ridgewood distance coach Patrick Ryan said. “But it can also be your biggest weakness because you can’t hammer all the time.”
“That’s a tough thing to learn, but he’s become a lot more consistent in learning to know when to put the hammer down and when not to. He’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 court
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School: Ridgewood
Class: Junior. Age: 17
Achievement: He set a Bergen County record in the 3200 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 court.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Bergen Record Female Athlete of the Week: Katherine Keating, Ridgewood