Brayden Shepard '25 Recruiting Profile

I started running in 7th grade and I was nowhere near a good runner that whole season. I was running simply because I enjoyed it and it brought me peace. Sometime around sectionals that year I started getting better times and beating some kids I never thought I could beat. My 8th grade year I was second on the team to my now best friend, it was covid year so neither of us really put in the effort we should of until one day, I was beat by a younger kid that I believed shouldn't have been able to beat me. He was working hard and we weren’t. That day a switch flipped and I started putting the effort I should have been putting into training. While I never placed first I always came in second. Once I moved on to Highschool I did the workouts, worked hard, and became third on the team only being able to be beaten by two seniors. I got comfortable again my freshman and sophomore year and forgot the lesson I learned in middle school. Because of this I failed to go to state my sophomore year for track and once again I remembered what it felt like to fail at something. I am currently about to be a junior. I have been putting in every ounce of effort I can this summer to reach my goals and become the runner my team, my family, and I know I can be. I bring more than just running to the table, I push myself hard and always try to help my teammates reach there full potential.