Emma Lugten: Ursuline Academy
"It goes without saying Emma "biglug" Lugten's presence has had a profound impact on the daily life of every girl that has been a distance runner at Ursuline Academy this past year. This is not just because of her amazing sense of humor, sense of style that compares only with the duchess of Cambridge or her ability to talk louder and longer than anyone on the track team. It is also because she has been a reliable role model and captain for Ursuline's Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor track teams throughout the 2012/2013 seasons. Her peers respect her because of her dedication, team spirit and desire to achieve. Emma's last race as an Ursuline athlete was one of my favorite races of the year because it reminded me of all the reasons I love coaching the sport of track and field. Our sport is about setting seemingly unachievable personal goals and then developing the fortitude, discipline and confidence required to make our dreams come true. She did not break a meet record, she did not have the fastest mile time of the day nor did she qualify for the divisional meet but she did run HER fastest time ever AND pushed her body to it's limit from start to finish. It is a race she can look back and be proud of for the rest of her life because she knows her finishing time was earned through hard work, dedication and sheer will power. These are the qualities that draw all of us to the sport of track and these are the reasons we love Emma and will miss her. Best of luck Biglug you will be missed ! "-----Coach TShaw
What do you enjoy doing outside of your running?
I love to skimboarding, surfing, golfing and spending time with my friends, most of whom are also my teammates.
What are you going to miss most about your high school running career?
I am going to miss the fantastic friends I have made through running. I have become so close to many of the girls on my team because we all had similar goals and schedules and its easy to become super close to the people that you see and that see you at your best and your worst. I will also miss the great bond between all the girls on my team. I loved that at meets everyone would stop and cheer for everyone even if they aren't your best friend or even in your grade. We had girls who got equally excited to cheer for the ninth grader with the PR of three minutes as they were to cheer for the girl who got a PR of 2:13 and that was really special.
What was your most memorable race?:
My most memorable race was the Catholic Conference XC Championship where I got to be a member of the first Ursuline team to win. I had worked so hard all season and all four years so to be a part of that kind of victory was unforgettable. I legitimately cried.
Out of all your high school running accomplishments, what stands out the most?
I will always remember winning Catholic Conference Championships in XC and finishing my last track race ever at the Norwell invitational with my best friend and a PR.
What was the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome?
I struggled with a stomach problem during my senior year cross country season that I had to learn to run with. I also remember that i would always be stressed out with practice, homework and a long drive home everyday in high school because I live about 40 minutes away from my school.
Do you have any advice for younger runners?
I would just say work hard and don't overly stress out. No one runs their best when they are close to a panic attack. Also I would say treasure the time you have with your teammates because thats a special bond and you will miss them when it is over.
If you were to change anything about your high school running career.....what would you change?
I would have gotten more serious sooner because once I got more serious and went the extra mile (no pun intended) I made such great improvements.
What are your college plans?
I have a sophomore transfer acceptance to Cornell University so I will be at University of Massachusetts Amherst for my freshman year then at Cornell to study Nutrition.
Who would you like to say thank you to?
I want to thank my coach TShaw who got Coach of the Year and absolutely deserved it, he pushed me so hard and helped me to get serious and make huge improvements on all of my times. He also helped bring my teammates together to become best friends and to set goals for our team.
I would also like to thank my best friend and teammate Cayla for running almost every single race with me and for being my PR twin. You pushed me and never let me give up or take it easy. This made me more successful and I loved running with you beside me.