Samuel Duncan '20 Recruiting Profile

During my freshman year, my cross country team was expected by many to advance to the State Meet from the Regional Meet for the first time in over 60 years. Unfortunately, three of our upperclassmen had their worst races of the season; resulting in the team dropping from third to ninth in the last half mile.  After my race, which was consistent with my times from earlier in the post-season, I realized that our upperclassmen the following year would be lacking in leadership abilities. Thus, I put it upon myself to step up and be a leader on the team. My coach noticed this at the end of my sophomore cross-country season, and publicly charged me to be the face of the team for both my junior and senior years. I now am one of the two members representing the cross-country team on my school’s “Captain’s Council” – a group of team captains that meets monthly to better the relationships between the sports, the athletic director, the school, and the city. I was voted to be and now serve as the President-Elect of the organization, and will serve as President my senior year.

Throughout my high school career, I  have and will continue to push my team to its limits as both the top runner and leader to not only qualify to the State Meet but also to place better every year. Further, I will build upon the leadership skills I have acquired through nearly a decade of being involved in the Boy Scouts of America to help each runner reach his goals and highest potential.

I believe the characteristics of resilience, leadership, level-headedness, and commitment I try to demonstrate on a daily basis have the potential to place me in almost any cross-country/track program while also being rigorous in my academics.