“A true competitor” – those are the words coach Clay Calkins uses when referring to his two-time All-American Juli Accurso.
And that’s just what she is.
Accurso has proven to be a powerhouse in the cross country and track community. She won the NCAA Regional meet with a time of 20:07 in November and finished 38th at the nationals a week later. The national meet features more than 200 runners.
She contributes a great deal of her success and love for track to persevering through struggles on the softball field.
“Nothing came natural to me on the softball field. Racing, on the other hand, came with this innate feeling,” Accurso said. “The absence of struggle and complicatedness that was present during softball helped me understand that I belonged on the track.”
Accurso began running in the eighth grade and reaped immediate benefits.
“I had a lot of success that year; I think I was undefeated in all of my races and I broke meet and school records,” Accurso said.
The commitment to hit paces and repeats came as second nature for Accurso as she discovered the sport that became her true passion. She credits her parents for instilling in her the necessary work ethic necessary to follow one’s passion.
“They taught me that when I invest myself into something, to invest in it with all that I have. That’s what I do with my running; I want to completely invest myself and see where it takes me,” Accurso said.
That quality makes her an example of what coaches look for when recruiting athletes.
“Her internal drive makes her one of the best athletes in the nation. Juli pushes herself beyond her comfort zone and has overcame the mental aspect that many athletes cannot,” Calkins said. “She is always wanting to get better.”
She has put herself in the category with past runners such as Jackie Conrad, Annie Beecham and Kari Summers
“You can’t teach speed,” Calkins said.
He believes that aspect, and her work ethic alone, puts Accurso ahead of the others.
Her passion, mentality, and natural ability have made her one of the best athletes at Ohio. With four track seasons and one more cross country season to come, she has the ability to break even more records and write her name in the history books once more.
“I want to know how far I can go, how good I can be; I want to reach my limits,” Accurso said.
ks934011@ohiou.edu
