Taylor Dugas '14 Recruiting Profile

At the age of fourteen, I was a dedicated basketball player who had the mindset, "I'm going to start as a junior for Varsity." Since the age of seven, basketball was primarily the only sport I played. I had spent summers practicing: shooting, dribbling, jumping and running and after my eighth grade summer of playing with my high school team, I had made a positive impression on the coaches. With a three month gap between summer league and fall tryouts I wanted to join a sport to stay in shape. Football was the first to come to my mind: building muscle, cardio and agility sounded rewarding. However, before I could finish the word “football” when asking about playing, my mother shut down the idea. Why I didn't ask my father first bewildered me. Crew was the next logical choice with its upper-body building, but a mistake in the location for tryouts  led me to cross country.

Grateful for the mix-up, cross country became my best mistake. I never ran before- even the concept to me was foreign. Coach Ernst explained that running would take time to develop, but he promised me that I would surprise myself if I committed to it. I took this to heart by running the required miles and a few on the weekends. Building on the success of my first season, my competitive nature from basketball kicked in, and I had achieved tenth place in the freshmen conference race and secured the twelfth spot on the varsity team. Even though I had become a part of a fraternity of guys that would become my best friends over the course of high school, the cross country season loomed to a close and basketball was just beginning.

The fitness I achieved by running prepared me for basketball and I was excited, but as the season progressed, I found less joy in the sport I once considered to be my passion, and I missed the camaraderie and spirit of support that I had discovered among my running teammates. After basketball season, Coach Ernst approached me, “If you need an outlet before AAU season, feel free to come out for track.” That was all I needed to hear and I was out on the track the next day. I felt revived to be around members of the distance fraternity and back in control. I knew that I had found my home, and even before becoming Varsity Co-Captain for Cross Country, my ability to lead and motivate team members was called upon. My personal records continued to improve and I was feeling confident about pushing my limits and leaving it all on the course or track. 

That first track season, I was on the 4x800m team to take second place at the Frosh-Soph conference and placed fifth in the 800m; and at Varsity conference I ran 5:03 in my first 1600m. Running gave me new life: a new passion, newfound integrity, new friends who have become my brothers in a sense, and new aspirations to never be afraid to try something new. 

Also at the age of fourteen, I thought I wanted to be a doctor; science- especially biology was my favorite course in grade school. However being a Chicagoan during the height of President Obama's election and re-election campaigns, as well as taking a course in Political Theory, brought a new passion to the table: politics. What I have found to be true with my changes in heart is that there is always more that will take you down new paths. To continue down these new passionate paths in college is a goal that I aspire to accomplish.