​​Spartanburg's Myers McKinney chooses Wake Forest

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What made you decide to commit to Wake Forest?
I had actually been interested in Wake Forest since my sophomore year in high school. At first it was just superficial things that caught my interest: location, academic rigor and so on...But as I visited Wake and met with the coach and the team, I felt like there was a noticeable sense of community throughout Wake. This was especially true when I met the team. Everyone seemed to have each other's back while at the same time wanting to improve athletically and striving for excellence both on the track and in the classroom.

Signings list

What were your other top choices?
I had been in some contact with Coach Elliot from Clemson, Coach Gary from Furman, Coach Bonsey from Georgetown. All three schools are phenomenal schools I would recommend anyone to consider but in the end, Wake Forest emerged as the best fit for me.

What do you hope to achieve in academics and athletics?
For me, academics comes first so in that field, I hope that in the liberal arts environment at Wake, I find that comfort zone where I enjoy school yet also feel challenged. In a broader sense, I also hope to find out what my education will lead to in the real world. Athletically, I do have specific time goals for the 5K, 8K and 10K, but more importantly than that, I want to stay injury-free and to develop meaningful, lifelong relationships with my future teammates. Running for me is such a sublime experience anyway, so I'm mainly looking forward to higher mileage and hope to keep up with excellent runners!

What did you experience during each visit?
The first couple of visits were not athletic as much as they were general visits to get a feel of the academic atmosphere. Those were very enjoyable because I got to speak to some of the Wake Forest faculty and I began to see myself as a student at Wake. Then this past January I took my official visit and spent time with the team. From the beginning, I felt immersed and very comfortable with the team, especially the freshmen who were my guides if you will. I ran with them, ate dinner with them and watched a meet with them at their indoor track and I already felt at home with the guys. Things felt even better the next week when I ran a meet at the same indoor track and I saw some of the guys there. Even though I ran a disappointing race, they were still there supporting and encouraging me all the way.

What would you recommend to others when choosing a college?
Having not actually gone to college yet, I would encourage a student try to imagine themselves living, studying and interacting in specific school(s) and to have fun during the process.

What does it feel like to have the decision made?
A lot of relief. I love that I can focus on getting to know the team at Wake and focusing on this last semester of track season and academics with much less pressure.

What do you hope to achieve this spring?
I haven't fully formulated my time goals/place goals, but I do know I want to stay injury free and to finish strong. Besides that I just want to help the team finish in top five at the state meet.

Looking at your career at Spartanburg, what will you remember the most?
I've made so many friends, gotten to meet so many people, and have been taught so many vaulable life lessons through XC and track as a Viking that I can't help but feel as though God had XC and Track made just for me.

What individuals in your life were involved in helping you make the decision?
My parents were both huge influence as they encouraged me to be adventurous and were in full support of my research into looking for and visiting schools like Wake.