Crawfordsville’s Halle Smith is headed to DePauw to continue her running career.
The former Athenian distance runner helped Crawfordsville to a number of successes including the cross country Sagamore Conference title in 2019.
“Running for the Crawfordsville distance program has taught me many things,” Smith said. “I’ve learned the importance of consistency and hard work in order to achieve your goals. I’ve learned the value of being a part of a team family and my role in leading, contributing, and lifting others up. While running can be considered an individual sport, working as a team is ultimately what leads to success. Running in this program has taught me how to push through the discomfort and know when your body is telling you otherwise.”
Smith understands that college running will have its challenges, but again believes the Crawfordsville program and running for coach Megan Craig has set her up to succeed at the next level.
“Coach has taught me how to handle disappointment and failure with grace and poise,” she said. “Finally, I’ve learned that the measure of success is based on my own personal growth and expectations. I truly found my joy in running when I realized that my competition is not other people. Someone will always be faster, stronger, or more experienced. My competition is with myself, setting out to be better today than I was yesterday.”
Smith hopes to continue to grow as a runner at DePauw, and has a goal of breaking 20 minutes for a 5K.
While she knew she wanted to run in college as soon as her final high school cross country season ended, DePauw wasn’t always the obvious choice.
“Before I visited DePauw, I was absolutely positive that I did not want to go there,” she said. “but, after seeing the campus, the environment, students, and opportunities I would be offered I couldn’t stop feeling the need to be there. The campus is beautiful, the education is amazing and DePauw will set me up with opportunities and connections I can use for the rest of my life. The environment made me feel like I could truly grow there as an athlete and student.”
Smith plans to study psychology and neuroscience.
