WISCONSIN RAPIDS – As both a mother and a high school coach, Sara Shefchik has seen parents push their children too hard when it comes to sports.
It sometimes leads to burnout or the athlete no longer competing for themselves but instead for others.
Which is why mom wasn’t going to force her daughter, Arya, to run cross country when she started her freshman year at Green Bay Preble a couple of months ago, even though Sara was a runner at Luxemburg-Casco.
But 26 years after Sara helped L-C win the WIAA Division 2 girls state title, she watched Arya make her debut on the big stage Saturday at Ridges Golf Course.
Arya was one of the best runners in the area this season and won a D1 sectional championship last week.
She might have been the tiniest of all the 190 D1 competitors in the field, but she had a solid debut after finishing 34th overall with a time of 19 minutes, 25.7 seconds.
It was the best time for any local girl in D1.
It’s also not bad for someone who could have picked golf over cross country.