Ava Stosich, senior at Shadow Ridge High School, played varsity tennis for three years.
She holds the 4A state doubles runner up title, helped contribute to her team winning state her sophomore year, and she was on her way to earning a white letter for tennis.
So why did Stosich suddenly decide to start running cross country her senior year?
Well, although Stosich has loved tennis and been very successful in the sport, she is also an amazing runner.
She competed in track alongside tennis her first three years of high school career and was looking to up her game even further after she discovered her real strength was in running mid and long distance events.
Stosich decided to focus all of her energy on becoming the best runner she could be.
Cross country was the sport many of Stosich’s teammates did in between track seasons to keep them in shape and to help them compete and become even better athletes. So she began to consider running cross country.
But there was one little problem… tennis and cross country were both fall sports, and Stosich could only choose one.
She reluctantly bid the tennis team adieu and decided to commit to cross country in order to help her become a better runner and competitor.
Stosich remarked, “During my junior track season, I switched to running the 800, which I found a lot of success in. I also started running on the 4×800 team. That led me to train harder and become even more committed so I could be successful in track. I decided that to get where I wanted to be, cross country would be the best option to do during the fall.”
Needless to say, adjusting to a whole different sport has been a journey for Stosich.
Running upwards of 5 miles a day in 110 degree weather is a stark contrast to training on the courts every day, or running sprints in track, but Stosich has been able to adapt and excel in her new sport.
“I’ve always been a mid distance runner, so switching gears to running long distance was pretty hard. Sometimes I don’t really like it and want to go back to my sprints and tennis, but long distance has definitely helped challenge me and make me a better runner,” Stosich stated.
After learning to train like a cross country athlete, Stosich’s running began to take off. She placed 5th at the southern Nevada Regional meet, and came in 8th at the state meet. She was also a key player in helping her team win the championship overall.
Stosich holds the spot for the 4th fastest girl ever to run cross country at Shadow Ridge, as well as holding numerous titles on Shadow’s track team.
She is looking forward to the upcoming track season and feels she has helped prepare herself to succeed.
Stosich also feels like there have been many people in her life who have encouraged her and helped her flourish.
She stated, “My older sister Bella has really helped inspire me. She actually got me into running because that’s what she did when she was in high school, and I don’t think I would have even thought about doing it if she hadn’t encouraged me to. My coaches have also motivated me and have really helped me stay focused and get excited to compete.”
Stosich’s cross country coach, Andrew Flynn said, “As a runner, Ava brought valuable experience from her time on the track. Even though this was her first year running cross country, her track background proved to be a huge asset to the team. Beyond her athletic ability, Ava’s positivity and talent for motivating her teammates made her an incredible addition.”
Shadow Ridge is excited to see what Stosich will continue to do in the world of running with her new training, support, determination to succeed (even when that meant challenging herself by doing something completely new,) and her natural athletic ability
