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Show Statesman Initial dislike of distance running turns into rewarding career for USU's Lifferth BY SCTH R. HAWKINS Sports Editor A E N D N E W P R O F I Y E A R I T E M S 23 - 27 L C L E A R A N C E A D D E D E V E R Y D A Y UtahState UNIVERSITY v-- E V E N T BOOKSTORE LEARN TO FLY! Before coming to college, junior track standout Stacie Lifferth said she hadn't run farther than three miles at a time - now she runs as many as nine a day and anywhere between 50 and 60 miles a week. It seems ironic that the woman who panicked when she saw how much she would have to run at USU would end up breaking distance running records and be well on her way to becoming an Ail-American athlete. "Before college the most I'd run was three miles," Lifferth said. "When I got an e-mail for a workout it was nine miles. I remember sitting at my computer crying." Lifferth, who was recently named USU Athlete of the Week for the second time this year for breaking a record held by Tiffany Strickland in the 3,000meter steeplechase, said she got her start in running from watching her four older brothers run. She said her family is tight knit, and she loved doing the things her brothers did, including join- Experience our brand new fleet of Diamond Aircraft! Nine-week Summer Private Pilot Program begins June 11, 2007 USU is the only four-year flight program in the Mountain West with all Glass Cockpit. For one low price you will receive 6 college credits; For more Information contact us at flight fees; F M checkride; text-books pilOt@CC.USU.edU and equipment. ing the track team when she was in eighth grade. Deeming herself an average runner her eighthgrade year, Lifferth said her coaches ran her in the 400-meters, 800-meters and mile. She said she saw considerable improvement her ninth grade year and won the little district competition her school was involved in. "One of the coaches just put me in and I kept doing it," Lifferth said. "I think with each year you just gain more confidence with it too. The thing is, I didn't really care a lot about track then. I played soccer in high school, and that was my main thing. I wanted to play in college too, but scholarships didn't come to me as easily. In high school I just loved playing soccer. I think it was good (that) I liked soccer so much because a lot of people get burned out after doing one sport so much." Lifferth said playing soccer helped her improve her running ability but said it was a different style of running. "(With) soccer you're doing a lot of running, and it's almost unconscious running. There's a ball in front of you so you're running for a purpose," Lifferth said. Lifferth received some offers for a soccer scholarship to junior colleges but said she wanted to attend a four-year university, so she agreed to run for USU on scholarship with a stipulation that she did not want to run anything longer than a mile. That didn't happen, but it worked out in her favor in the end. "My scholarships were for cross country and track," Lifferth said. "I would run cross country in high school but I wouldn't practice for it. I would go to soccer practice and would run at a (cross H UTflH STf flCGlES 1.1 * i Trevor Niekon/ctn@<(.usu.edu JUNIOR DISTANCE RUNNER STACIE LIFFERTH clears a hurdle as she runs the 3,000-meter steeple- chase at the Mark Faldmo Invitational on April 14. Lifferth set a school record in the steeplechase in Oregon last weekend and has a goal to become an All-Am eric an by the end of the season. country) meet. I just hated cross country. When they told me what my scholarship included, I was like, 'Oh! Cross country!' "Cross country hurts. It just hurts to run that far that fast. It's a lot of miles you have to put in. I just didn't like it. Still I have a hard time with it," Lifferth said. Lifferth said she enjoys track more than cross country. While she didn't want to run distance, she has excelled in the distance races and said now the 1,500meter is way too fast for her. Lifferth runs the indoor 3,000-meters, the 1,500meters and the 3,000-meter steeplechase. When asked which event was her favorite, Lifferth said, "The steeplechase is a lot better because it has that touch of soccer where it has a little bit of purpose - something to focus on. The water jump is something you have to have your steps perfect on." The steeplechase is a distance event nearly two miles long that is interrupted throughout with hurdles that don't move. One of the hurdles has a platform leading up to it that an athlete runs up and leaps over the hurdle to land in a small pool of water. It is in the steeplechase that Lifferth broke the school record with a time of 10:18.89 - a time that also • DISTANCE RUNNING see page 7 GettirT married this summer? Looking for a place to live? Get a $250 rent credit when you apply for USU Family Housing by August 1,2007 USU Housing has a variety of apartment and home styles for you to choose from: Aggie Village (1,2, or 3 bdrm) Mobile Home Park West Stadium Villa (3 bdrm) Townhomes Rates include: Cable TV high-speed internet water, sewer, and garbage UtahState UNIVERSITY HOUSING SERVICES exercise facilities shuttle bus to and from campus community programs and activities To apply or receive more information, call us at 797-3314 or visit us online at www.housing.usu.edu |