Stephanie Garcia's self-proclaimed goals for her final year running as a Cavalier are lofty to say the least. But anyone who knows her wouldn't expect anything less.
"I want to be an All-American in all three seasons - indoor, outdoor and cross country," Garcia said nonchalantly.
Ambitious? Yes. Impossible? Not for someone with Garcia's talent - the fifth-year senior was named an All-American in steeple in 2009, was named to the All-ACC cross country team in 2008 and already has captured an individual title this season with a first-place finish at the Lou Onesty Open at Panorama Farms.
"I'm extremely competitive and ambitious to a fault," Garcia said. "I am always overbooked with too many things that I'm doing - too many projects on my plate."
Throughout Garcia's life, and amid all her various projects, running has always remained a constant. When she was a little girl growing up in Austin, Texas, Garcia said her mom frequently took her and her two brothers to the track so they could spend time out of the house. And even at such a young age, her competitive nature always compelled her to strive to be the best.
"I always was a runner growing up; my mom really encouraged us to do it all the time," Garcia said. "In middle school, they'd take all the fastest milers and have us race at the end of the year, and I was always in that. It was a lot of fun ... But I always tried to win it."
These days, Garcia follows one of the more rigorous training regimens on the team. It includes not only running an average of 60 to 70 miles a week, but also lifting weights, swimming and a variety of other cross-training exercises. And although most college athletes are only in season for a small portion of the year, Garcia, a three-season runner, is never afforded the luxury of an offseason. To her, the idea of rest is a pipe dream she may experience one day far into the future.
"You start racing cross country in September and you race through November," she said. "And then indoor starts right away, and then outdoor starts, and if you're lucky, you're racing outdoor through July. And then that leaves you with about a week or two of downtime, and then you start training for cross country again ... We don't ever stop."
For now, Garcia faces the arduous task of leading the young, but talented, No. 12 women's cross country team during a season in which expectations are high. This has thrust Garcia, one of the oldest and most accomplished runners on the team, into a leadership position she was slightly uncomfortable with at the outset.
"I think what I've learned is that everyone is watching you, so that kind of threw me off a little bit," Garcia said. "I'm used to doing my own thing. Now you need to make sure that you are leading by example at all times; you can never get out of your leadership character."
But as in most of her pursuits, Garcia has come to perform admirably in her new role, earning the respect of her teammates and coaches alike.
"Stephanie demonstrates that it is possible to live a life outside of cross country/track while still showing up and being a fierce competitor," junior Laurel MacMillan said. "She has one of the strongest work ethics of anyone I know, balancing several academic and other pursuits with the time consuming project of being a successful D-1 athlete."
Through the Cavaliers' first two races on the season, Garcia has compiled two top-10 finishes, including a convincing win in the team's season-opening race at Panorama Farms. But even with all of Garcia's on-field prowess, the main piece of advice she gives to the team's young runners concerns their ambitions away from the sport. Garcia is currently enrolled in the University's two-year Master's program in English.
"I like to encourage people to do other things at U.Va. - it's such an amazing school," Garcia said. "Meet people in your classes and join a club... It's really important to have a couple of other interests besides running, because when running is really hard or it's not going the way you want it to, it's good to step back and put it in perspective and try something else."
Maintaining that perspective will be crucial for Garcia when her final season of eligibility comes to an end next July. That said, she will be the first to say that runners don't peak until the age of 28, meaning the best may be yet to come.
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