MOBILE, Ala. – Tori Lawson is a three-time all-Sun Belt Conference cross country performer for the University of South Alabama, but she may owe her success as a runner to a very different sport — gymnastics.
“I first became interested in running when I was in the sixth grade when I was competing as a gymnast,” said Lawson. “As conditioning, they began to make us run two miles. I would run the two miles with the first group of gymnasts and then wait for the second group so that I could run it again.”
A father of one of her gymnastics teammates at the time started a Junior Runners Club in her hometown of Ocala, Fla., and soon after quitting gymnastics, she became one of the first to join. “We participated in local 5k races around the area and I fell in love with the sport,” Lawson said. “It wasn't until high school, however, that I realized I wanted to compete at the highest level possible and began training full time.”
Her high school career began promisingly, and as a freshman at Vanguard High School in Ocala, Lawson finished third in the state cross country meet. She placed fifth in the same meet as a sophomore and won a state championship in the two-mile event as a senior in 2009. She accomplished all of this despite battling numerous injuries throughout high school, including stress fractures in her left shin and left foot.
“I was never healthy for more than seven months at a time, and my dreams of obtaining a scholarship seemed to be slowly diminishing,” said Lawson. Following the advice of her high school coaches, she remained patient when deciding where to attend college.
In April of her senior year, she toured the USA campus and was offered a scholarship. She liked the school size and campus atmosphere, and decided to accept. “For me, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to rebuild my running career.”
Entering her collegiate cross country career, Lawson had two specific goals in mind. “I hadn’t broken my high school freshman record in the 5k due to injuries. Coming into my freshman year of college my primary goal was to break that time of 18:09,” Lawson said. “I also was focused on trying to stay healthy and avoid any more injuries.”
Early on, though, she suffered yet another stress fracture — this time in her left ankle — as well as nagging hip flexor problems. This prevented her from being able to train the way she would have liked.
“Distance running is all about conditioning, and no matter how much you cross train when you are injured, nothing completely replaces the benefits of running.” She has since been able to remain injury-free for the most part, and attributes much of her success to staying healthy.
Lawson’s health has also allowed her to expand on her goals. “Since [my freshman year] my goals have changed significantly. My personal best is now a minute faster, and I have now been injury-free for over a year. I have learned that a good runner is never content and that as long as I am running, I will be striving to break all of my personal records.”
Lawson says another important factor in her success has been the instruction of head coach Paul Brueske and head cross country coach Mike Barbee — specifically the conditioning program they have implemented.
“There is a lot of emphasis on strength training, stretching, dynamic drills, and many other smaller parts of training that add to the whole aspect of being a good runner,” said Lawson. “Without the extensive detailed schedule and practices, I definitely wouldn’t be where I am today.”
Her praise for the coaching staff is certainly reciprocated. “Tori means a great deal to us,” Barbee said. “When I first got the job almost two years ago, she was coming off her first fully healthy season. Since then, she’s gone about 20 months without an injury, and she’s improved with consistency through steady training.
“She’s a three time all-conference runner, and the conference has really become much more competitive over the last few years, so for her to remain at that level is a big deal.”
“Tori has been a tremendous competitor for us since she arrived,” said Brueske, who thinks that Lawson has a chance to be one of the all-time great Jaguar runners. “I believe if she has a good season this year, which I expect her to, that she will end up being one the most outstanding runners in school history.”
Lawson’s teammates have also played a major role in motivating her to improve, according to Barbee. “She hasn’t had the girls to train with in years past, but now we’ve brought in some younger athletes and some girls that can challenge her in workouts and really push her,” he said. “Having some more competitive teammates in practice has helped to elevate her as an athlete too.”
As she enters her final season of eligibility for cross country, Lawson has set her sights high. She will seek to become a four-time all-conference athlete and to improve upon her best conference standing, which is currently fifth. “I am striving for not just a top-three finish at the conference meet, but to hopefully become a conference champion,” she said.
The Sun Belt Conference Championship meet, held this year in Bowling Green, Ky., is where she really wants the team to shine as well. “The conference meet is what we work so hard for throughout the season. Every race throughout the season is important to our team, but they are mostly to gain experience for the conference meet.”
After the conference event will be the NCAA South Regionals in Tallahassee, Fla., where several top-tier programs from leagues including the Southeastern and Atlantic Coast Conferences will gather to compete.
“I hope to be named an all-region runner this year,” she said, an honor that goes to the top 25 individual finishers at the meet and would put the finishing touches on a decorated cross country career.
Although this marks her senior campaign for cross country, Lawson will return next year for one more season with the track and field team, where she has also found plenty of success. She set school records last year in the 5000 meters for both indoor and outdoor track with times of 17:12.89 and 17:08.54, respectively. She was also a member of the school record-setting distance medley relay team which finished with a time of 12:05.46.
When her college athletic career ends, Lawson says she hopes to remain involved in running. “My ultimate goal is to one day become a head cross country coach at the collegiate level,” said Lawson. “I would like to build my coaching philosophy and program off of the experiences and coaches that I have had throughout the years.”
Asked what she will take away from her experience as a Jaguar student-athlete, Lawson said, “I have learned what it means to dedicate myself to a cause completely and to follow through with it every step of the way. You will have to take the good days with the bad, and without experiencing bad days you will never completely be able to appreciate the good ones.”
Lawson and the rest of the Jaguar cross country team will compete next Saturday when they host the Azalea City Classic. The meet will take place at the Brookley Gulf Pines Golf Course in Mobile; the men’s race begins at 7:30 a.m. with the women to follow at 8:05 a.m.
-USA-
