Morgan Lucey is no stranger to hard work. A senior at Episcopal School of Jacksonville, Lucey has managed to master the fine art of juggling a rigorous academic schedule with running track and cross country. Lucey’s hard work and dedication have not gone unnoticed, as she has been accepted to and will run cross country at the prestigious Princeton University.
Lucey has always been an exceptional student. She has never taken a regular class in high school, as Episcopal offers a lot of honors and advanced placement courses. Her senior year schedule, for example, consists of AP Chemistry, AP Physics, AP Literature, AP Calculus, AP Statistics and Theology. Her current GPA is 4.42.
President of the National Honors Society, Lucey is also a member of the Cum Laude Society, Mu Alpha Theta, and the Pre-Med Club. She is also the President of Daniel Club, which helps raise funds for the Daniel Kids Foundation, Inc. Lucey has also volunteered for Daniel Kids Foundation, Inc. for the past five years, helping to organize summer camps for kids who otherwise would not be able to have that experience.
In addition to such a hectic school schedule, Lucy also finds time to compete on her school’s track and cross country teams. She has been running track and playing volleyball since middle school, but last year she finally had to make the decision which she had continuallydebated over: whether to continue with volleyball or to give cross country a shot.
“Last spring I really fell in love with running,” Lucey said. “My time started dropping a lot and I realized that I just didn’t want to be playing volleyball anymore. They are in the same season, and throughout high school it has always been a dilemma of which one to choose. But after last year, there was really no question that I was going to run cross country.”
Lucey made the right decision, and it would seem that she has just scratched the surface of her talents. In her first season ever running cross country, she advanced to the State finals and ended up placing third. She also finished third place in the 3200, or two mile, event in track and field. Lucey was on the All-First Coast track and field team and the All-First Coast cross country team for 2014.
“Morgan leads by example,” Head Coach Stacy Brunell said. “Her teammates respect her and admire all of her achievements. She is a tremendous athlete, student and leader. Her teammates see her natural ability but also that she works extremely hard on and off the track.”
Lucey’s strength in track has been her ability to stay mentally tough. The transition into cross country proved to be difficult; it is definitely a different sport. Being on the course instead of on the track was one of the challenges Lucey had to overcome. On the course, a runner does not have the advantage of having their coach nearby to give instructions or advice. It is very difficult; Lucey had to get tougher in order to start doing well.
“It is my job to pull greatness out of each athlete,” Coach Brunell said. “This isn’t always measured by wins, but by effort and personal bests. My favorite moment is when I see a young lady dare to dream and push herself. It isn’t if she achieves the goal, it is when she dares to try. Morgan is special young lady. She has had to fight through fears and doubts to achieve her running success. We are getting a glimpse of what her future will be.”
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My In The Game Moment
It was during the State finals in track last year. I remember during the race the first lap was really fast, too fast, and I just remember kind of freaking out a little bit. But then the pace settled and with two laps to go I just remember feeling good, making a move, and finishing third. That was the first race that I ran a time that was considered to be more on the elite side in high school as opposed to just being good. That was the first race that I proved to myself that I could be good. For me, that was such a great day. I love racing. It is an addicting feeling being on the start line and crossing the finish line.
Most People Don’t Know…
“I am actually very superstitious. The night before a race I always have some type of red meat, I have lucky socks and sports bra that I always wear and I have a very specific warm up that I like to do. You never know how you are going to feel before a race. During a race, things can go either way pretty quickly and it is hard to control, so I think a lot of runners have their lucky things because it is something you can control before a race.”
North Florida/ Academic Athlete/ February 2015
Morgan Lucey
Episcopal School of Jacksonville
Jacksonville, Florida
JESSICA BABCOCK
Episcopal Cross Country Standout Commits to Princeton
