Ashley Cottino, senior at Shadow Ridge, is a star athlete, as well as an accomplished scholar. These past three years, she has been crushing it in the classroom as well as on the racecourse 

Cottino has been a member of both Shadow’s cross country, and track teams for her entire high school career. She runs the 800 as well as the 4×800 for track, frequently earning her team points in meets. Cottino was also a high jumper her sophomore year, medaling in the 2023 state meet. 

Though Cottino is a phenomenal athlete, she has her struggles just like everyone else.

“One of the challenges that I’ve faced is that I’m more of a short distance runner, and in cross country, I’m trying to run 3.1 mile races. I’ve learned that just because I’m not built for long distance or the best at it, that doesn’t mean I can’t work hard, ” states Cottino.

Jacob Payne, one of Cottino’s track coaches, as well as past physics teacher, says, “Ashley’s work ethic is up there with the best of them. She is determined to be the best athlete and student she can be. She has hit some walls and had some obstacles [she has had to overcome], but that hasn’t stopped her from working hard day in and day out.”

And she has been very diligent in working through her pitfalls. Cottino says, “Sometimes it’s hard to be a runner, especially when in the past I’ve been anemic [low on iron in my blood] or injured. I’ve just learned that you can’t treat practice like a 2-4 thing, you have to work on yourself at home too. You have to stretch, weight train, and eat things that will strengthen your body.” 

Cottino also has many figures in her life who have helped her in her journey of becoming a better athlete, including some of her past teammates.

“The two teammates that have inspired me the most are Ellie Reese and Leah Okuda. Ellie really helped motivate me because she believed in me and my abilities even when I wasn’t very fast, and was always pushing me to become better. Leah is just such a hard worker and inspires me to try my best,” says Cottino 

And all of Cottino’s hard work has paid off, with her seeing improvement in both her cross country and track times.

Cottino remarked, “The moment I was most proud of myself was at Laguna Beach when I was running the 4×800. Usually I’m pretty hard on myself and my performance in races, but when I saw the clock right before I crossed the line, I was smiling!”

Along with seeing improvements in her athleticism, Cottino is on a fast track of success in her studies. She is ranked number one in her class, and hit the GPA cap long ago. By the end of her senior year, she will have taken 13 AP classes.

But sometimes balancing everything in her life from sports, to school, to family and friend time can be a struggle.

In order to keep herself on track, Cottino says, “I just have to get things done even when I don’t want to, and to work now for what I want in my future. I have to remember that I’m going to be a lot happier that I put in the work now when I’m all done.”

Cottino’s plans after high school are to attend college either at UNLV or at a university in Utah. She also expresses interest in becoming a firefighter. 

Cottino is widely revered by those both inside and outside of school. One of the ways fans show their support for her is by celebrating National Ashley Cottino Day, which is recognized every year on October 3rd. Participants wear the classic Cottino outfit, consisting of slides, running shorts, and a hoodie, honoring their beloved Ashley and bringing her awesomeness to the attention of the world.