With the Foothill Technology High School (Foothill Tech) cross country team’s season wrapping up, one of Foothill Tech’s star runners, Isabella “Bella” Efner ’25, has made an impeccable impact on the team.
Efner’s early years of running started in elementary school, continuing her running career for the De Anza Middle School (DATA) team which led her to Foothill Tech. Her passion for the sport has led her to be a four-year varsity runner at Foothill Tech. Efner’s true passion for the sport began in 2020 during quarantine, “I would run a mile everyday, so it started my passion for [running], and I decided to continue in high school.”
The community that the Dragons fostered is what has kept Efner so involved in the sport. Efner explains the team feels like, “a second family” and that, “having that [connection] emotionally and mentally … is beneficial to the sport.”
Efner’s running career began as an activity to do with her friends, but her passion allowed her to realize that running was something greater than that. “Running used to just be something I do, but now it is a part of me.” During off seasons and summers, Efner spends her days running to improve herself. She explains that she has devoted her life to running, which she proves in her 5K personal record (PR) of 19:42.2, making her second in TCAA league rankings.
Cross country means more to Efner than just running, she believes that this sport is so fulfilling and accomplishing because you get out what you put into it. The sport itself has allowed Efner to learn that you can do hard things in any situation, and that hard work will always pay off.
Efner will be competing in California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Finals, where the Dragons look to advance to the CIF state championship. With Efner’s final high school season coming to an end she exclaims to be, “excited to have these last few races with my team … I am more focused, since it is my last season.” Coming into each race Efner tells herself, “I can do this no matter what.” Her resilience in a race never stops, no matter what could go wrong in a race, she is determined to finish.
Her running career will not end here as Efner is interested in running in college, but if not, she will run for her school’s intramural club. No matter what, she looks forward to a future with running, continuing with training and hopes to be involved in road races such as 5K’s, half-marathons and marathons to pursue her passion.
