Sometimes great disappointments lead to unexpected success. Fort Middle School track athlete Nyana Geisler had such an experience last year when she competed in her first track and field event for her school.
Geisler was a seventh-grade student at the time and a member of the Patriots’ 4×100 meter relay team. As the first runner of the relay, Geisler’s job was to hand off the baton to the athlete running the second leg of the race. Unfortunately, the two runners missed the connection and dropped the baton. It was a devastating moment for Geisler.
“I was really upset,” Geisler, 13, said. “Our first meet, and we dropped it. I am very competitive, so it was hard to deal with something like that.”
Minutes after the dropped baton incident, Geisler’s coach approached her about running in the 800 meter race. It was her first year of participating in sports, her first year of running track, and her first track and field event. In addition, Geisler had never run 800 meters in practice much less for a competition. However, the 5-foot-6, 113-pound athlete decided to go for it.
She won.
“I guess after such a bad thing had happened with the 100, I just put all the madness into that run,” Geisler said, smiling. “When I reached the 200 mark, it was anybody’s race to take.”
Surprised at her accomplishment, Geisler realized she had the skills and ability to be a good track athlete. Track was the third sport of three she participated in during her seventh grade year. She played volleyball for the first time in the fall and gave basketball a try in the winter.
The articulate and intelligent student-athlete had a good first year with sport participation. Those experiences inspired her to try out for soccer this past fall at Fort. When she finished up with it, Geisler played her second year of volleyball before moving on to basketball. She plays the small forward or shooting guard position on the Lady Patriots basketball team and participated in the middle school All-Star game in March.
For the 2016 track season, Geisler’s coach, Oliver Ellis, has her participating in three events. She is running 800 meter events and the 4×400 relay races and adding the 1600 meter race. Ellis feels that Geisler has the ability to be even better than last year.
“Her strength is her tremendous character,” Ellis said. “She is a great leader, inspires others, always works hard, and has a ton of heart. She simply has fun with whatever she is doing and yet is still a fierce competitor. The girl just exudes confidence and backs it up with hard work and premier effort.”
Between last school year and this year, Geisler endured a big transition in her life. Her mother was offered a job in Savannah, but instead of moving with her, Geisler remained in Columbus with her grandmother so she could finish her middle school years at Fort. Although her mom lives out of town, Geisler speaks with her every day, and her mother attends almost all of her daughter’s sporting events.
The straight-A student is thinking about high school, but enjoying these last few weeks at Fort is her primary focus. She has been a four-sport athlete and will have to make a decision about which sports to continue at the next level.
“I really like basketball, and I think maybe track might be something I do,” Geisler said. “In both of those sports, you have to rely on yourself but also are part of a team. Even when you feel like it, you can’t quit. I don’t want to let anyone down, so I work harder. I think I can manage that in high school sports, too.”
Columbus Valley/May 2016
Nyana Geisler
Fort Middle School
Columbus, Georgia
Track athlete’s first win fuels desire for more
By Beth Welch
Photos by Beth Welch
