Andrew Van De Mark '21 Recruiting Profile

I have always been a very determined person throughout my entire life. Since I was young, I have played multiple sports, including soccer, hockey, and lacrosse. In every sport, I always had the desire to be as good as I could get and perform to the best of my ability.  In every sport, my speed has been an instrumental factor in my success.  So, when I decided to try out indoor track this winter, I entered the season with a similar, positive  mindset. I had never really ran track competitively,  just a few times my sophomore year as a way for me to stay in shape.   My junior year was different, as I really wanted to put forth my best effort and see how much I could grow and accomplish. I invested in my coach's plans and workouts to develop me from having minimal experience as a runner to being as good as I could possibly be. I ended up having a very successful first indoor season, running a 1:24.07 in the 600M, breaking a school record that had stood for 9 years, and making it to the Connecticut State Open and then New England Regionals in Boston  - all with no prior running training. The only way I was able to do this was through the help of my coach and my attitude to keep improving and never giving up. After the indoor season finished, I realized that this could just be the beginning of my track career.  I understood that this was only my first real season of track, and I have the potential to accomplish so much more in the coming years.  I want to see how much I can improve myself throughout the next few years, not only as an athlete, but as a student, too. Overall, I am grateful for the support I have gotten to help catalyze my abilities as a runner, and for the potential opportunity to learn more from a great coach and run at the collegiate level.