What sports are you involved in here at WEGO?

So, I’m involved in cross country in the fall. In winter, I’m in basketball, and in spring, I’m in track and field.

How long have you participated in these sports?

I [have participated in] all of them since freshman year, so four years now, but [the] COVID year was hard to do sports. I only did basketball and track that year, not cross country.

I was on Varsity freshman year for cross country, and [ran] freshman/sophomore races. And then for basketball, I was on the freshman team; I’d usually play a guard role. During track, I ran some events, but I was mostly focused on jumping.

Who is your biggest supporter as an athlete?

R: My biggest supporter as an athlete? Honestly, probably most of my teammates ’cause I actually like a lot of my teammates. Like Fernan Reyes: he’ll be in the same sports, so we’re always pushing each other, supporting each other.

What is your most memorable experience in one of these sports?

For cross country, when I made it onto Varsity, it was our conference race and that was the first time I broke 19 minutes in the 5K. It was me and Connor Zentner, breaking it together.

So, you mentioned another person. Is there a lot of teamwork that goes into these sports, or is it kind of individual?

A lot of people think running is just an individual sport, but how it works in cross country is the top five runners on your team score points, and so it’s basically a team sport. If only one person does good, and everyone [else] does bad, your team score will go lower. In basketball, it’s a team sport, and then it’s kind of the same thing in track and field, where if you place top three or two, you score points for your team.

Do sports take up a lot of your time?

R: Yeah, since I’m in sports all year long, it’s pretty much school and then sports right away. I am employed, [and] I have to limit my hours I’m working. But usually after sports, I either go to work, or just do homework the entire time, and then I just go to bed.

Sounds pretty busy. Do you have any goals for this year, sports-wise?

This year, specifically, for track and field, I’m trying to move up in the placements for triple jump and beat All-Conference, so that’s probably my goal.

That’s a pretty good goal. And who is an athlete that inspires you and why?

An athlete that inspires me is…Imma name one that goes to this school. Keenan O’Keefe inspires me because he’s torn his ACL twice, and he’s come back to the sport every single time. So, I think that’s what inspires me to keep going.