Event: Short Sprints
PR’s: Indoor: 60 - 6.94 (2019)
200 - 22.19 (2019)
Outdoor: 100 - 10.86 (2018)
200 - 21.94 (2016)
Year: Senior
Hometown: New Prague, MN
High School: New Prague High School
Personal:
My proudest moment was at 2019 Indoor MIAC Championships where I broke two (almost three) school records, claimed two MIAC titles in the 4x200 and 200, and placed second in the 60.
I am a Global Business Leadership major with a Japanese minor. With an internationally-focused major, it's my goal to work abroad and see as much of the world as I can. I love learning about new cultures, traveling, and meeting new people, so I figured a major in Global Business would be the best way to cover all three of these things. As of right now I have no definite plans for after graduation lined up, but I'm hoping to find a job that will let me travel as much as I can.
The sense of community was one thing that really did it for me when I choose to come here. There are quite a few people I knew from high school that went here, so I'd heard a lot about how much of a tight-knit group Johnnies and Bennies were. I didn't realize just how true this was until I got here. You can't go anywhere without running into at least five people you know, and it seems like any alum you meet is willing to do whatever they can in order to help you succeed after school. Another thing that I liked was the dual campuses. They both give you different feels with one being more modern and the other more old school and nature-y. I really like having that variety. I suppose being able to continue running track was a pretty good reason as well.
The funniest memory while being on the team was in 2016. It was freshman year, indoor conference, we're staying at the luxurious five-star Motel 6 in Lakeville, Minnesota. We have a few options for food, but being from the area I know Baldy's BBQ is just a short walk across the parking lot. I go in, immediately see "full rack of ribs" and decide that's what this athlete needs for a hard weekend of competition. I sit down, and since I had gotten there a little later than everyone else, I see everyone else getting their food. All I'm seeing are these little sandwiches, so I ask, "Are you guys not hungry?" A teammate responds, "We are, we just couldn't spend more than $10 on food." My jaw dropped after I heard this and realized I was gonna get a little earful from the coaches after they see what I'd gotten. My teammate asks, "What's with that look? What'd you get?" I respond, "...A full rack of ribs..." They get all wide-eyed and ask how much it was. "...24 dollars..." They all just start laughing, and sure enough, the server comes out calling for the unfortunate soul who ordered a full rack of ribs. I raise my hand, she sets it down, and I get to work hoping I can finish off enough of it before the coaches turn and find out what this noob of a first year had done. I finish all but three ribs before I have to call it quits. It's at this time Joe Vardas turns around and asks me, "Whatcha got there?" I tell him it's a full rack, he just nods and says, "Better run fast tomorrow." The next day I ran a PR in the 200 and place second. A number of teammates came running up to me afterwards yelling, "THE RIBS!" Since then the ribs have come up more times than I can count, but Baldy's once again seemed to work for me in my last ever indoor conference meet!
Q & A:
Q: Which coach would you pick to live on a deserted island with and why?
A: Jeremy. He listens to a lot of different podcasts, so I'm sure he's picked up a thing or two about deserted island survival. On top of this, he seems to have a long list of entertaining stories he could tell to pass the time. Joe would just yell at me for having improper coconut harvesting techniques, and Tim would spend all day lounging around working on his tan.
Q: If you were in the coliseum and were challenged to fight wiener dogs, what is the highest number of wiener dogs you could defeat?
A: Zero. I'd be too distracted by their cuteness to even think about fighting them.
Q: Would you rather be the world's greatest racquetball player or have $20 right now?
A: World's greatest racquetball player. I'd then challenge someone who chose the $20 option to this question to a game of racquetball for $20 dollars, beat them (you know, being the best and all), and make them feel like the fool they are.