Future Stars Spotlight: Taylor Nicholson

Not only is Avon sophomore Taylor Nicholson a state champion miler from the state of Indiana and #1 runner for a nationally ranked team, but she also happens to be World class in the jump rope. As part of the Future Stars Spotlights presented by Hoka One One, MileSplit interviews the 4:51 miler Nicholson as she looks to lead her Avon squad to another jump at season's end to challenge the Carmel girls at their state meet and advance onto a national meet.

Interview with Avon (IN) sophomore Taylor Nicholson

How did you first get started running and why?

I started running in 6th grade. My older sister ran XC and I thought it would be fun so I joined a running club for AJAA and have been running ever since.

What expectations or goals did you have for yourself in your freshmen year of cross country?

I honestly had no idea what to expect of myself coming into high school. I had never run a 5k before, just the 3k from middle school. After our first couple races, I began to realize what I was capable of and our goal of making it onto the podium became more of a possibility.

You ran well at the state cross country meet last fall with a 5th place finish. How were you able to overcome the nerves and inexperience of running in your state meet to run as well as you did?

I have really bad pre-race anxiety, which has gotten better, but I was extremely nervous before the state meet. We previewed the course a couple weeks earlier, which helped, and my teammates really helped keep my nerves controlled on the line.

Probably your top running moment so far has to be winning the Indiana state 1600 title last spring as a freshmen in 4:51. Take us through that race and how significant was that win for you?

I was ranked second in that race to my biggest competition of the season, Rachel Nichwitz, who I had run against several times earlier in the season. I wasn't focussing on finishing first, more on racing my best. The race is honestly a blur, but I remember Rachel and I running together up until I pulled away with about 300 to go. Winning was a great accomplishment, and I'm hoping to maybe keep that title for the rest of high school, but I just loved having the opportunity to race against some amazing runners. It also showed both myself and my team that the upcoming XC season would be a special one.

The Avon girls only graduated one runner from their top 7 last year's team, which finished 5th at the Indiana State Meet. Did knowing your team bring back virtually everyone from last year give everyone on the team and the coaches a strong belief that the 2014 cross country could be a special one for the program?

Of course! We were all extremely excited to return almost our entire varsity team. We knew that the experience of our varsity would really be beneficial for a great season.

Avon is definitely a program gaining national recognition this fall. What are the reasons for the team having one of its best seasons ever?

The fact that we returned almost our entire varsity team is a big contributor to that, along with all of our determination to have one of our best seasons ever.

How was your summer training? What kind of mileage and training did you do over the summer months to get ready for the cross country season?

My summer training was a bit scattered at times because I traveled around a lot for jump rope competitions and camps, but I did run mileage on those trips. When I was home, I did PPMs on Tuesdays and Thursdays and a timed mile on Saturday.

The Carmel girls have been the team to beat in the state for many years in Indiana. Are the Avon girls really looking to racing against them and see how you girls might matchup?

The Carmel girls have set a high standard for high school cross country for so long, and it has helped make other teams in the state better. We are looking forward to competing with them and helping to make Indiana cross country even better.

You are also known as a top level competitor in the jump role. How did you get into jump roping and do you see any benefit/conflict of still participating in both jump rope and running at same time?

My mom was a world champion jumper along with my aunt, so jump rope has been part of my family for quite a while. I started jumping rope in 2nd grade. I believe that jump rope helps running and running also helps jump rope. Jump rope has helped me develop my fast twitch muscles, which has helped with my turn over especially in track. However, they can be conflicting at times because trips I take for jump rope can interfere with my training schedule, and races can interfere with my competitions or performances for jump rope.

Watch Taylor compete at 2013 World Jump Rope competition

What gets the most reaction out of people? Telling them you are an Indiana state champion in the mile and a top finisher World Jump rope championships? It's okay to be honest.

It depends; most people don't know or understand anything about competitive jump rope. However, practically everyone knows what track is. So it depends on the person usually.

You won your first two major meets in the season before finishing second in your last race against another top sophomore in Alexa Haff from Hinsdale Central in Illinois. What did you learn or take away from that race with Haff?

Haff is a great runner and I loved being able to compete against her. That race showed me just how hard you have to want something and how much you have to be determined and not give up.

What are your top goals of the remainder of the cross country season?

I am hoping to be a top finisher at our state championship. Also our team is hoping to compete with Carmel for the team champion position.

When you graduate high school in 2017, what would you like to say you accomplished with your high school running?

I want to podium and run well, but I really want to remember all of my team mates and all of our great memories.