After one collegiate season, Andrea Maas is to the Ohio women's cross country team what airplanes are to travel and the Internet is to communication.
The freshman runner arrived in Athens in the fall as a prized recruit from Colerain High School in Cincinnati -a school known for producing runners -and did not disappoint.
She quickly established herself as the standard of speed for which her teammates strive.
We hadn't really had a lead runner in a while
so her being able to step in even as a freshman was great for our team
Ohio runner Carly Spellman said. She's like the rabbit
and we're all trying to catch her.
Few runners from any team managed that in 2003. Of the more than 1,000 competitors Maas ran against in seven meets, only 87 beat her. She paced Ohio all season, earning four top-10 finishes and a personal best time of 18:15.00 for 5,000 meters.
Equally important, though, Maas brought leadership to a team with no seniors and only one junior, Ohio coach Clay Calkins said.
As a coach
you don't want to put someone in that situation -that's asking a lot of a freshman
Calkins said. But (Maas) was very determined. She has an intrinsic drive to better herself.
Birth of a runner
Earlier, however, this drive had been used solely for sprinting purposes. After competing in the 100 dash during middle school, Maas entered high school not intending to be a distance runner until renowned Colerain cross country coach Ron Russo persuaded her.
At first I hated (high school cross country)
Maas said. The first half of freshman year
I would come home from practice and lay on the floor crying and saying I didn't want to do it.
Under Russo's guidance, Maas persevered with her running career and developed the mental aspect of her racing abilities.
I would say 70 percent (of running) is mental
Maas said. If runners didn't think about what they were doing
we'd all run a lot faster.
Today, Maas's father, Al, who had been a standout distance runner at Elder High School, provides the main source for Maas's drive to run.
He motivates me when I'm unmotivated
