Athlete Spotlight

How long have you been running cross country?

"I have been running cross country since seventh grade, so about eight years, roughly."

Why do you love cross county?

"I love cross country because it is a good way to try and push yourself mentally and physically. The physical part is obviously the running, and the mental part is just when you don't want to keep going and you have to push yourself."

Do you have any embarrassing moments in your career?

"Oh, there are so many. There was a girl during a race who was faster and she kept pushing me to go faster, telling me to keep up and go faster. … I pushed myself so much that I ended up peeing myself; that was in high school."

What famous athlete inspires you the most?

"Emma Coburn inspires me. In high school she wasn't very fast and it wasn't until she got into college at Michigan State that she got faster and she won several awards and ran in the Olympics."

What struggles do you face as a cross country runner?

"Mentally my struggles are when I can't keep going, I'm hurting. I run the 10K, which is (about) six miles. You have to tell yourself that you trained for this. You can do it, you can keep going."

What are your goals or expectations for this season?

"I want to run 18 minutes in the 5K, win the regional, and make the All American top 40 in nationals."

What are your future cross country and life plans?

"I want to transfer to either Western Michigan or Northern Michigan to run there. For my life plans, I plan to get a bachelor's (degree) in biochemistry then get my master's and PhD."