The life of being an athlete. Early mornings. Late nights. Long practices. Grueling workouts. All to see the end goal, a championship. Although many try, very few succeed. North Penn sophomore cross-country runner, Bailey Wagner, did succeed. 

In her freshman year, Wagner placed 74th. Exactly one year later, she improved by nearly 50 spots. 

“[Going into the season], I wanted a medal. It was a big goal, and I knew it would be a big jump from my first year because I placed 74th freshman year and medals are for the top 25 finishers. I knew I could compete with the top girls so I just had to stick with them the whole season and do the same thing at states,” sophomore Bailey Wagner stated. 

While this was a looming goal, Wagner had to navigate the noise throughout the season to return to the coveted course in Hershey. 

“I try to block everyone out. There are so many people and it’s so distracting so I’ve learned to ignore the noise,” Wagner explained. “The whole race I’m just locked in on finishing. I just try to talk myself through.”

“Because I knew I wanted to get to states, my mindset was well I can’t get a medal if I don’t get there,” Wagner said. 

Although States was looming in her head the entire season, Wagner made it her goal to make herself better and be a good leader for her teammates. 

“We only had one other runner that went to states last season and she has been injured so I felt like I had to pick up the leadership role. I knew that I was the top runner so I needed to be there for all the other girls and motivate them so they could perform well too,” Wagner said. 

Wagner placed within the top 15 throughout the entire regular season, with 6/7 finishes being in the top 10, allowing her to qualify for Districts, and later, States. 

“Because I was the only one that qualified, I could bring people with me [to States] so I got to bring a lot of my friends and teammates,” Wagner explained. “Just being with them made the experience a lot less stressful and allowed me to focus on having fun with them before having to lock in for the race”

Although part of her goal was accomplished, it was still an uphill battle for the sophomore as competing in States was no easy task. 

“I knew that the course was hard from my freshman year. My mindset was you did it your freshman year, you can do it now. It came down to maintaining the spot I was in and staying next to the people I wanted to keep in my sight the whole race. I also just tried to forget about it and not think about what I was doing so I could get through,” Wagner said. 

Although she prepared all season for this moment, being in Hershey for the moments leading up to the biggest meet of the year was still extremely stressful for Wagner. 

“It’s nice that I can bring a lot of people that I’m close with, but still it’s very stressful,” Wagner explained. “I tried to eat a lot of carbs so I could get good energy and lots of sleep. I focused on taking deep breaths, ignoring my setting, and taking a second to refocus my mind. You see the other teams and all the girls you’ve been running with that are super fast, but it goes away once the race starts. It’s just a lot of stress leading up to it.”

As the gun went off at the start line, everything seemed to fade away and all Bailey had to focus on was putting one foot in front of the other and keeping her pace. 

“When you’re racing, it’s super hard to tell where you are and you have people screaming at you the whole time, so I had no clue. I was very motivated and trying to stay focused and not get in my head because I knew that would throw me. I tried to just focus on the goal and how I would feel after. That’s my favorite thing about racing. The way that you feel so good afterward,” Wagner continued.

“[When I finished], I realized I got my goal. It was super exciting and I didn’t even think it was real at first,” Wagner said with a smile. 

Running has been something very important in Bailey’s life, but she didn’t always run. 

“I was originally a swimmer. I used to see my dad running crazy times and I wanted to see if I could do it. [Cross country] was pretty new to me because it is more serious than the run club I did in middle school,” Wagner stated. “It was more of something you could do with your friends, whereas in high school, it’s a lot more serious and you are focusing on time and improving; but I was already committed to it, so the transition came naturally to me.”

“[Overall] I just love this sport and all the girls we compete against. They’re so friendly, kind, and easy to talk to which makes it easier to compete. I like that we get to know my competition which is a lot different than the other sports I’ve done,” she continued. 

Although she found it later than most people, running has taught Wagner so much about herself and has helped her improve her life in so many ways. 

“Running has taught me so much like my don’t give up attitude. It is also a great release. It helps me get rid of some of my stress and I think it has also helped to boost my self-confidence,” Wagner said. “I think [running] is such a privilege and it’s very therapeutic to go out for a good run.”

After a very successful cross-country season, Wagner is looking to ride the wave into the upcoming Winter Track season and accomplish some more of her goals. 

“My goal for winter track is to try and get to the bigger meets, but also keep a good mindset and not push myself too hard,” Wagner concluded.