Senior Veronica Lugo sprints to finish her race at the Pike invite.

Senior Veronica Lugo, a well-respected and versatile athlete, winds down her cross country season. While this is only her first year running for cross country, she is leaving a lasting impact on her teammates and coach. She has helped bring up the team morale and spirit in much-needed times, and she is well-respected and admired by her coach, Brian Miller. 

Miller has been impressed by Lugo and her attitude towards running since he first met her. Throughout their time together, she has continued making memorable moments that Miller will carry with him as a coach.  

“Although she had never run distance before, she was keeping up with our top athletes,” Miller said. “This led me to believe that she could be a very good runner.”

Teammates of Lugo also believe that she is successful because of her attitude. But it is not just her relatable attitude that brings the team together. It is also her becoming a great teammate to everyone in the group.

“As soon as you see her you brighten up,” teammate Madeline Nouel Morales said. “We correlate really well as she is really funny, by being herself.” 

Lugo has become a great friend to many of her other teammates too, growing closer with them each day.

“She’s not afraid to start a conversation and evidently build a friendship with the other girls on the team,” senior Avyanna Jones said. 

Lugo encourages her teammates to keep improving, as she wants to see her team succeed and thrive in meets. Lugo believes that motivation is important for success and that runners have to stay motivated to stay mentally “in it.” Her motivational efforts do not go unnoticed by her teammates.

“Veronica always cheers me on even when I’m not doing my best,” teammate Jacqueline Hartman said. “She is always so supportive and positive. She always pushes me to be better, and even outside of sports she is one of my best friends and always there for me, which makes me so happy to have her on my team.”

Aside from supporting her teammates, Lugo has a main focus of becoming personally better day by day. For her to achieve this, she focuses on the little things, specifically positive reinforcement, that will help her improve in matches. 

“I stay focused on dropping time or getting a better placement,” Lugo said. 

In order to get that better placement and perform her best, Lugo needs the push from her coaches, who want her to improve so her talent can shine on the big stage. While doing this, coaches have learned personality traits about Lugo that they believe is key to her success. 

“Veronica is a competitor and will continue to push herself all the way to the end of the race,” coach Miller said. “That's a hard thing to coach, and she does it naturally.”