The recruitment process can be long and challenging for aspiring collegiate athletes. It can take countless months for athletes to decide which schools will best benefit their skills.

In order to find the right athletes, colleges must conduct a lengthy process to find athletes that would best suit their program. The colleges evaluate the athletes’ athletic abilities, personality, and academic accomplishments.

After the coaches have decided who the finalists are, they introduce verbal offers and scholarships to the athletes. In the end, the coaches will sign the athletes who they believe are the best fits for them.

Bryce Gilmore, a senior at Sage Creek, is looking forward to running in college. He recently committed to Wake Forest, located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He also received an offer from the University of Virginia.

His passion for the sport came from a significant person in his life.

“My dad thought I would be good at cross country, so in eighth grade, he signed me up for it figuring I’d be good at it. I won every race in 8th grade so I was like, ‘I should probably try this out in high school’,” Gilmore said.

Another student at Sage Creek who has collegiate running aspirations is Stormy Wallace. She is a senior who has gone on official visits to multiple colleges. As her college interests rise, her times on the track are improving.

“I’ve been actively recruited by a few colleges,” Wallace said. “I’ve narrowed it down to Northern Arizona University and UC Davis.”

Wallace doesn’t only have her mind set on personal accolades, she is also a great team player who is supportive of her teammates and is optimistic about the upcoming season.

“As a team, I think we want to do really well at state,” Wallace said. “Hopefully we can improve upon our team times.”

Malia Leupold, a junior and runner at Sage Creek, has her sights set on running in college. She is looking to continue running for a school in California, specifically a UC school or her dream school, UCLA.

Leupold has received emails from the University of Temple and the University of South Florida. Even though she is a top runner, she still has a lot of focus on academics.

“I want to get into STEM and I’d also want to be running at a collegiate level,” Leupold said. “It will be a lot to balance those two just because they are both hard to do and if you want to do both at the same time it will be hard but I think I can do it.”

These three runners seek success in running and in the classroom during their time in college. They will continue to represent Sage Creek as they compete at the next level.