Meet Sophia Powers of the Highlands! Sophia is 14 years old and attends Living Water Academy. She runs cross country and track for the STL Blazers. She also plays soccer for Ascension. In fifth grade, Sophia got to participate in her first cross country meet and she loved it. 

Initially, she wasn’t interested in running because it never sounded fun, but her dad persuaded her to try it. When it comes to improving and motivation, Sophia’s dad helps her a lot. She has been doing track for 3 seasons (3 years). She has been playing soccer for five years and her favorite position to play is left wing (forward). Her favorite track events are the 200, the 400, and the 4x400 and 4x200 relays. 

Sophia’s favorite part about track and soccer is improvement. She also enjoys the friends she gets to make. A challenge Sophia faces is finding motivation and pushing through. “For example, sometimes in the middle of a run or a race I'll be in pain, and I want to stop or slow down really bad, but I have to keep going, so really just the mental aspect I would say is the hardest for me,” she says. 

Even though finding motivation can be tough, pushing through can be very rewarding. Sophia has won two gold medals, a bronze medal, five first place ribbons and a mix of third, fifth and sixth place ribbons. Her favorite moment in track has always been the final track meet for Ascension; it’s the last track meet of the season, and she loves to participate in it. Some advice she would give for new runners is to start slow, “It takes time to build up endurance and speed so don't be unmotivated if it's hard, you can't do as much as some people can at first.” 

Aside from running on the track she loves to play soccer and going to the driving range to go golfing with her dad. She also enjoys hanging out with friends. At the moment she is not sure which college she wants to go to, but she would love to run for the University of Texas, the University of Louisiana, or Duke.