What was your most memorable meet or race?
It would probably have to be one of two races: the 800m sectional race my senior year, or the 1600m sectional race my freshman year. Ever since MSHSAA redid the sectional assignments my junior year, it’s been really tough to get out of our sectional in mid-distance/distance races, and going into the 800 this year, I knew it would be difficult to finish in the top four. I ended up qualifying, PRing by 2.2 seconds and breaking the school record. I was completely in shock afterwards. And at sectionals my freshman year, I wasn’t seeded anywhere close to the top four going into the 1600m race, but somehow moved from 5th to 2nd in the last 200m, and PR’d by about 10 seconds. Especially being a freshman, I couldn’t believe what I had accomplished, and was in tears because I was so happy.
Out of all of your high school accomplishments, which stands out the most?
Ever since I qualified for state in cross country and track my freshman year, my goal has been to get an all-state award. I was finally able to achieve this goal my senior year (2nd in the 800, 6th in the 4x400), and that was an incredible experience.
If you could do it all over again, is there anything you would change?
I would have slept more—frequently during my time at Burroughs, I chose homework over sleep, and that affected my performance in some practices and meets.
What were the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome?
My cross country season junior year, I really struggled with mental toughness throughout the year. Even though I consistently hit workout times, for some reason, I couldn’t motivate myself to do the same in meets. Not being able to perform the way I wanted week after week was one of the most frustrating things I’ve gone through in my running career. I considered not running track that year, but eventually decided to run, my only goal being to regain my passion for the sport. My coach switched me to middle distance (800/4x4), because I have more fun with those races. I ended up PRing in both events, and going to state in the 800 for the first time. So in hindsight, my struggles with cross country that year helped me to find out how much I loved running middle distance, and succeed probably more than I would have, had I stuck with longer distance.
What will you miss the most?
I will miss my team and my coaches, and the small, tight knit community at Burroughs. I will also miss competing with familiar faces at every meet, especially the Villa, MICDS, and Clayton teams. I couldn’t have asked for more positive, friendly competitors--you girls pushed me to be a better runner every weekend, and I am so thankful. Lastly, I don’t know what I’ll do the next four years without my parents coming to all of my meets and supporting me.
Do you have any advice for younger athletes?
Don’t get too bogged down in what times you’re running, or want to run. I ran my best races when I was just running for place, without assigning a time goal to any specific meet, or freaking myself out about specific split times. Also, don’t put anyone on a pedestal—unexpected things happen in so many races, so you should never count yourself out, regardless of who you’re running against. But most importantly, make sure that you’re having fun, because there’s really no point in running if you’re not doing it for your own personal enjoyment.
What are your college plans?
I will be attending Washington University in St. Louis. I don’t know what I’ll be majoring in, but I plan to run cross country and track. Run Fast Go Bears!!
Who would you like to thank?
I would like to thank my teammates, for being so supportive, positive, and fun to be around at every practice and meet. I also would like to thank Coach Bugnitz, Coach Harris, and Coach Thorpe—you all have pushed me to go beyond what I thought I was capable of on a daily basis, and I owe all of my success to you. Also, of course, I want to thank my parents, for coming to every meet (and frequently waiting several hours to watch me run for two minutes), braiding my hair, booking hotel rooms at Jeff City before the season has even started, the pancakes, the energy chews, the cliff bars, the sandwiches, the chairs, and being my #1 fans through it all.
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 10px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: invert none 0px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; font-family: Verdana;">Want to be featured in our Salute To Seniors series? Email PEverett@milesplit.com and answer the questions above! Congratulations to the seniors on all their hard work and success.</em><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; font-family: Verdana;"> </span></p> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; font-family: Verdana;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; font-family: 'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; font-family: Verdana;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <p> </p>