At the peak of dawn, Coppell High School sophomore Maya Easterwood exits her home and starts her morning run, further training her stamina and pace.
Her love for running started at Coppell Middle School East where she was introduced to cross country in seventh grade.
On Oct. 11, Easterwood set her new record of 16:52 at the District 5-6A Championship at North Lakes Park in Denton.
Yesterday, Easterwood finished the UIL 1-A-6A Region 1 Championship with a time of 17:25, qualifying her for the State 6A Meet on Nov. 1.
She currently has the fastest time of any sophomore in the nation and is second in state.
“I like competing against other athletes and challenging myself to be the best,” Easterwood said. “Putting everything on the line to see how far you go motivates me to keep going.”
Easterwood’s ability in running exemplifies her aptitude for the sport.
“She’s definitely the most talented female runner I’ve ever been around,” Coppell coach Landon Wren said. “She’s incredible and it starts with her work ethic. As the year went on, she just continued to get better at running and you could tell she was gaining more confidence in her abilities.”
Easterwood’s determination allows her to push towards her goals.
“She has a desire to be the best in any sport she plays,” Easterwood’s father Caleb Easterwood said. “She knows what athletes are better and what their times are, so she uses that to set goals.”
In addition to athletic skills, Maya focuses on the mental aspect of competing. In her free time, Maya and her father study film of other competitive runners.
“One thing I would advise other runners to keep doing to succeed in their goals is to stay consistent and push yourselves,” Maya said. “Don’t let other people hold you back. If you want to run with a group of people but they’re going slow, you should take the extra step and run at the pace you want to and stay consistent.”
Because of her running pace, Maya practices outside of her comfort zone, preparing her for meets.
“She’s running with boys because that’s what’s going to push her to run faster,” Wren said. “I think as you see that, it motivates you as a runner. If she can work hard, I can work hard.”
Maya has even exceeded her coach’s expectations this season.
“I knew that she’d be faster this year, but what she’s been able to do has been pretty incredible,” Wren said. “If you’re willing to push yourself during practice, you’re going to see the benefits on race day.”
Wren has seen Maya emerge as a vocal leader to teammates, which excites him with two more years of high school running ahead for her.
“In this coaching business, you can go your whole career and not coach someone like her,” Wren said. “She’s an awesome young lady and is very humble. She’s all about putting in the work and doing the best that she can do, day in and day out.”
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