Reuters Ryane Clowe, left, celebrates his goal with Joe Thornton, far right, and Curtis Brown, middle, following Clowe’s second-period goal in the Sharks’ 3-1 win over Nashville. The Sharks take a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference quarterfinals.

Now she is turning her attention and focus to the track, hoping she can reach the pinnacle as a runner.

So far, so good. Brunner won both the 800 and 1,600 at the Serra Top 7 meet over the weekend, blowing away the field in the process. For her efforts, Brunner is the Daily Journal Athlete of the Week.

Running the mile in the rain, she posted a personal-best time of 5:18.60, more than eight seconds faster than the runner-up. The rain stopped but the wind picked up for the 800, which she ran in a time of 2:24.10, more than five seconds faster than the second-place finisher.

Her times didn’t surprise her.

“I was supposed to be right where I was,” Brunner said. “I was seeded No. 1 in [the mile]. If I was No. 1, I should have won.”

This is the first year in which Brunner has dedicated herself to running. In the past, she used running as a training tool for her dancing. Brunner had a decision to make when her distance coach Nick Carr told her she could be one of the top runners in the Central Coast Section if she focused on running. Last year, she was dancing, running track and going to school. In the middle of the season, she went to Ireland for the world Irish dancing championships and her track season suffered.

“I was practicing (dancing) every day. I was running every day. I was going to school every day. I didn’t have a lot of time for myself. It wasn’t enjoyable any more,” Brunner said.

That didn’t make her decision any easier.

“It was hard (making the decision to drop dance). It’s been part of my family for three generations,” she said.

Brunner made the decision to scale back her dancing and focus on her track this season, her senior year. It was do-or-die time in attaining another goal she had — to make the State Meet. She missed out on the cross country State Meet by two spots and didn’t want to experience the same disappointment during the track season. She spent the winter training for the spring track season.

Her dedication to track this season has already paid off.

“I’ve seen in one year how I’ve changed running,” Brunner said. “I just feel I had done my part in dancing. I was at the top of the top.”

Whatever she does, Brunner gets credit for doing it the hard way. The 800-1,600 double is one of the toughest in track. Years ago, the 800 and 1,600 were both considered middle distances. Now, the 800 is considered a sprint in which speed is just as important as endurance, Carr said.

“[The 800-1,600 double] is pretty tough,” Carr said. “She’s definitely on the speed side. She runs the quarter mile fast. She’s our best quarter-mile runner.”

Said Brunner: “As you get to the higher levels, the mile is starting to seem like a sprint.”

What makes the races difficult to deal with is the time off between races at a meet. At the Serra Top 7, she had a two-hour break between her 1,600 and the 800. It may seem like plenty of time to recover until Brunner put into perspective.

“After running as hard as you can and then coming back and running as hard you can again, [the time off] is not that long,” Brunner said.

She didn’t show any ill effects at Serra Saturday. In the 1,600, she built up a lead of about 50 meters, which is an eternity on the track. She dominated the 800 as well.

“She demolished everybody,” Carr said. “She went into the races with a mindset of she wasn’t going to sit. Previously, she chose to sit and run with the others (runners). Saturday she decided it was time to go out and run her race.”

Her performance both in cross country and track have drawn collegiate interest. She said Loyola Marymount, U.C. San Diego and U.C. Santa Barbara have all expressed an interest in her running for their track teams.

“I wanted to run in college,” Brunner said. “They all really want me. It’s great to know (that I’m wanted).”

College is still six months away and she has more immediate goals in front of her: The aforementioned State Meet. Carr thinks she’ll run the 800 at CCS, which is one of the most competition races in California. Brunner isn’t sure what race she’ll use to make the State Meet.

“I can’t really choose right now. I really want to go to State. Whether it’s the 800 or mile, I don’t care,” Brunner said. “There are a lot of fast runners in the 800. I don’t want it to be like cross country where I miss it (the State Meet) by two spots.”

As for her future in Irish dance?

“It will always be a part of me, but running is really more exciting right now.”

Nathan Mollat can be reached by e-mail: nathan@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 117.