What are your goals for the season?
My goals for the season are to possibly win the 3k and also, as a team, of course, to win the conference this year. It was kind of upsetting last year to not win the conference so I’m really excited to see what the whole team can do.
How often is last year’s outcome brought up?
With our coach, it definitely is something that is brought up because it gives us that fire and that drive to want to win. It definitely is something that comes up often. Our coach includes it in his speeches almost every practice.
When did you first start to like track & field?
I didn’t start it until my freshman year of high school. I didn’t really go to a school that had the option of being in track, or cross country. It was something that was very new to me. But I always knew that I enjoyed running. I loved doing the mile at school and also doing pacers. That kind of just gave me this love for running. And when I knew that I could have the opportunity to do it, I took it as soon as I possibly could.
How soon did you think about running collegiately at some point?
It wasn’t till around my junior year that I thought about that and figured out that that could be an option for me. That was just a goal that seemed so far away. But as the seasons tended to get better, and I became more experienced, I realized that that was a real option for me. So, after talking to my coaches, I was definitely interested in the possibility of doing that.
What are you most looking forward to this season?
I’m just looking forward to being with our team. Our team culture has been really good. We’ve just grown so much and I feel a lot closer. I’m excited to work with them on the process of winning the conference, hopefully.
What have been some of your favorite memories so far with the Bison?
Definitely our team camp that we had was one of my favorite things that we’ve ever done. And also winning our cross country conference this year is one of my favorite memories.
What was the team camp?
For the team camp, we went to Belle Shores, Minnesota for the weekend. We had all this time together and right after was our first meet of the season. We just played volleyball, we ran together, we swam, we just got to do a bunch of different activities that we don’t usually get to do together because it’s usually all running all the time. It was kind of nice to have something outside of running to be able to bond together and get to know each other a lot better.
From cross country to the steeplechase to a host of distance events you do, there’s a lot of variety. Is that something you enjoy?
Yes, I love having variety. I think I get sick of doing the same thing over and over again. I kind of like having to switch my mindset with different races. I think it just helps me mentally to kind of just focus in on that one race, and being able to change that is nice when one race isn’t going well.
What are some of your passions outside of track & field?
I really enjoy reading, actually. I don’t get to do it as often as I would like, but that is something that I really enjoy doing. I also am part of a club called Fellowship of Christian Athletes and I spend a lot of time with that. All my friends outside of sports are mostly from that club. That’s just something that I’m super passionate about because it’s my faith—that’s pretty much what I run for.
What are some good books you’ve read recently?
I like fantasies. There’s a book called “A Court of Thorns and Roses” and it’s part of a whole series about fairies and stuff. It sounds kind of funny, but I like that kind of stuff. It’s just fun to go somewhere else different than this world and just be able to be inside of a book. I just love that.
Accomplishments
2020-2021
Indoor:
- 6th in the 3000m (Summit League Championships)
- 7th in the 5000m (Summit League Championships)
- 9th in the mile (Summit League Championships)
Outdoor
- 7th in the 3000m steeplechase (Summit League Championships)
- Ran the 10th fastest steeplechase time in school history
2021-2022
Indoor:
- 5th in the 3000m (Summit League Championships)(8th fastest in school history 9:46.16)
- 9th in the mile (Summit League Championships)
- 9th in the 5000m (Summit League Championships
Outdoor:
- 3rd in the 5000m (Summit League Championships)
- Ran the 8th fastest 5000m in school history (16:49.36)
