As a year-round student-athlete, balancing classwork and academics with training has been at the forefront of my entire high school career—freshman to senior year. Though the classes I undertook were rigorous and required an extreme level of commitment and attention, I persisted with my athletic career because it taught me several valuable life lessons. The sport I feel that I am most involved in is Cross Country. While only a fall sport, it is, in my opinion, one of the most physically demanding and difficult sports to compete in. We train by running upwards of thirty miles a week to compete against other teams in 5000-meter races on various terrains. My freshman year I decided to try out for the Cross Country team to stay in shape and make
