Ava Neretic '26 Recruiting Profile

Hello Coaches,

My name is Ava Neretic, and if I had one word to describe myself, it would be "relentless". I am constantly striving to improve myself athletically and academically, and I translate this fierce passion to the track or cross country course.

I believe my foundation in martial arts played a critical role in the formation of my mindset. At the age of four, I began training in the martial art of Taekwondo, where I not only developed great motor coordination and strength, but also learned how to hone my focus and stay disciplined while training. I learned to have confidence in myself, but quickly realized that my form or skill was never perfect- my kick or block could always be tweaked to be more efficient. Understanding that I will have to face these faults often gave me the ability to assess my weaknesses and, rather than buckling underneath them, actively search for solutions. However, this wasn't Taekwondo's only contribution to my "relentlessness". During one sparring match, I was kicked in the knee and found it too uncomfortable to keep fighting. Not until my opponent was declared the winner did I realize what I had done: I had forfeited. I remember feeling furious with myself since I had lost of my own choice, not from trying my hardest. I realized that if I wanted to succeed, I would have to acclimate myself to pain and push through it, even when my body would resist. I did not know at the time how well the ability to claw through pain would translate to distance running.

This mindset is also a product of my academic experience. As I have begun to pursue more and more rigorous classes in high school and extra courses in my own time, I have begun to see how much there is to learn. While incredibly exciting, I have started to see how enormous of a task it will be to learn everything that I am interested in. I know that to perform well in my classes and start familiarizing myself in my field of interest, it will take time, and lots of studying and practice. I have seen positive results from the effort I put into my classes in grades and the comprehension of material, and know that it works the same way for running: by clearly defining your goal, the effort you put into your training will directly translate to your performance. My goal is never just to get faster, but rather a specific time that I can pursue and break, in which case I set a new goal. Currently, my goal is to break a 5:05 mile, which I will work for until I can update this statement.

Cross country and distance running itself brings me great joy. I think I am a useful asset for a cross country/track team as the sport demands strong willpower and a desire to constantly drop time, and I enjoy seeing my dedication and training come to fruition. I also love the supportive competition the sport provides, since you are physically racing against others, but in reality you are racing against yourself, trying to set a new best time. I love that I am constantly faced with the challenge of becoming faster, so that I can keep working to improve myself. I am very eager to continue to keep challenging myself at the collegiate level.

Ava Neretic