“When racing gets hard I like to tell myself to think of how good it’s going to feel after knowing I gave it my all.” This is Keera Wallace’s ‘26 mantra when it comes to running. Wallace has been a contributing member of the starting seven for the Foothill Technology High School (Foothill Tech) girls’ cross country team since her first high school three mile race.

Wallace has been running ever since she was little. She participated in the youth track program, Tigres, for a few years in elementary school. After a brief hiatus to compete in other sports, she resumed her running journey in later years of her time in middle school.

Though Wallace started running because her parents signed her up, she stayed because of “the feeling of accomplishment after I finish running … on top of that, the running community is really amazing.” Wallace stated that she enjoys the ability to “push [her] limits both physically and mentally.”

Out of the many meets throughout the season, Wallace’s favorite was the Clovis Invitational. This was because of the “larger racing environment … along with that comes faster times, excitement, and nerves.” She also enjoyed the ability to “get closer with the team” as it was an overnight meet. At this race, Wallace achieved a personal best of 19:57 in the five kilometers, which equates to a three mile personal record.

It is often debated on whether cross country is a team or individual sport. Wallace provides insight on this inquiry with her response to where she gets motivation, “My team really helps me stay motivated to accomplish my goals … knowing that everything I do is for them is so inspiring.” Despite the individualistic qualities of running, to Wallace the team environment allows each athlete to “push each other to be the best version of [them]selves.”

Wallace reflected on how running has shaped her life and what lessons she has drawn from the sport by stating, “knowing that I can do hard things … and not give up when things get hard are some lessons that definitely translate into my daily life.”

Wallace is “not completely sure” if she wants to run in college, though she is not opposed to the idea, as she stated, “I definitely never want to stop running anytime soon, and I would be very happy to run at a college in the future.”

Wallace will be competing alongside her teammates at the CIF-SS Division Finals on Nov. 18, 2023 at Mt. San Antonio College where they seek to run hard in order to move on to the State Championships.