For as long as she could remember, sophomore Maria Fernandez had a passion for running.

“I was in the womb running!” Fernandez said, who has been running since the age of 6. She would go running with her dad and see his training process for his marathons.

For Maria, 3 miles brings her joy. Running is in her blood with her sister, Anna, who was a star track athlete at St. Dominic and her dad, who ran marathons back-to-back. So Maria is learning from the best.

In the spring, Fernandez is really looking forward to soccer and track to begin. In soccer, Maria plays center-mid.

“My running really helps me in sports,” she said.

In the summer, Fernandez runs 5Ks placing higher and higher each time she competes. So whenever school starts, it’s her training season for the 5K. When asked how she runs nonstop everyday, she said “my friends help me stay motivated. Sometimes I’ll go walking with them or bike riding as a substitute and a good playlist to keep you upbeat nothing can stop me.”

Fernandez remembers going to her sister Anna’s track practice and beginning with a mile timing herself every day and eventually working her way up to three miles in under 30 minutes.

Her sister Anna says “she started when I was in track and now she’s about to pass me up.”

When asked what was the purpose of running, she answered “just to stay fit and hopefully one day I can get so fast I can go to the Olympics.”

That’s right. Fernandez would love to go to the Olympics for soccer or track and she’s doing it the right way by practicing every day.