Averie Griffith '19 Recruiting Profile

    Running has always been a part of my family growing up, as my mom, brother, and sister all competed in track, so I knew it was something I at least wanted to try. I was introduced to hurdles in seventh grade, as I wanted to try something different nobody in my family had done before. From the very beginning of attempting to hurdle, I knew that it was something I wanted to continue to do. That passion only grew as the time continued and as I both practiced and competed more.

    I come from a large family of five girls and two boys. Together, we make a family of nine, and some have even referred to us as the Brady Bunch plus one. Growing up in a large household, there has never been a dull moment. Some would say I became competitive at a young age; whether it be competing for the last slice of pizza, or the last spot on the couch when watching a movie. My family means everything to me, and there is not one thing that I wouldn't do for them. They are my biggest fans.

    In school, I strive for the top of my class, with my goal to become part of the top 10%. I try and stay on top of my work as much as possible, getting things turned in as soon as I can complete them. I want to be sure I can at least ,maintain my GPA, if not increase it. Once I reach college I want to be able to improve the knowledge I have learned thus far, and stay a studious student. Grades are extremely important to me and I will continue to do anything in my willpower to keep them up.

    I have always been an avid reader. According to my mom, as soon as I learned to read, there was never a time you could find me without a book in my hand. I have been able to read a wide variety of book genres and authors, but by far my favorite author would be James Patterson. I started to read his books when I was in the eighth grade, and haven't been able to stray from him long since.

    In seventh and eighth grade, I was doing exceptionally well in hurdles, placing first and second most of the time, then high school hit. The first meet of the season, my coach put me on Junior Varsity, so I could prove to her, and myself, that I was truly ready to compete on Varsity. The next time we practiced after that meet, she bumped me Varsity, but then my confidence began to falter. Due to my inexperience on Varsity, I wasn't placing, and I was blaming myself for everything that I did wrong, when in fact, I was, and still am, in the process of learning. I had a teammate that felt threatened by me as well, and she threatened to quit the track team if I beat her. That season, there was a couple of times that I contemplated quitting track, but I am so glad I decided to keep doing it.

    This year, my Junior year, will be my fifth year at running track. Through everything I've been put through in track, from the practices to the people, I've grown as an individual into someone I can see succeeding with my passion. I have grown to become more of a team player than I would've have originally thought track would be like. I always envisioned track as a free-for-all sport, where it's every man for them self. I have experienced first hand in what it's like to feel un-welcomed in a sport that it supposed to be enjoyable, so I have always made sure that every person that I am out there with feels like they have someone to lean on when they aren't feeling their most confident. Through my years I have tried to be a sort of leader for the younger girls, someone they can easily go up to and talk to about insecurities they are feeling.

    Through my experience with track, I've come to find out a lot of things about myself that I didn't know before. I learned that I am stronger than what I think, through those hard workouts and intense meet days, I've become a stronger person than I thought imaginable, not just physically but mentally as well. I have also come to realize that no matter what, there is always room for improvement, whether it be a millisecond, or a mental block.