Josie Carson
SENIOR / LAKE HAMILTON HIGH SCHOOL
OUTSTANDING PLAYER: GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY
WHY SHE WON
Senior Josie Carson is a force at Lake Hamilton
High School as she dominates in the classroom and on the track. Carson, 5-6, discovered her skills in the sixth grade when she joined track alongside her friends. While she originally joined the sport for the camaraderie, Carson soon found that she had a gift for running. That passion has helped to earn Carson the title of All-Arkansas Preps Outstanding
Girls Cross Country Player of the Year “Each runner gets to decide what time or what place in a race constitutes success for him or her,” Carson said, adding that runners tend to have a great deal of respect for their competition. Carson and her competitors have a lot in common — a passion for the sport — and it’s apparent in her performance. Her friendship with her teammates is also special to her, as they view Josie as a great leader and friend, said Karl Koonce, Lake Hamilton’s cross-country running coach. He added that Carson is an intense competitor in the way that she focuses on the finish line but also has great sportsmanship in her ability to befriend her teammates and her competition. Carson’s excellence off the track is just as awe-worthy as her racing records: She holds a 4.3 grade-point average and scored a 34 on the ACT. “Josie has worked very hard and sets high standards for herself,” said Deonne Carson, Josie’s mother. “She not only trains hard; she is incredibly disciplined for a teenager — sticking to a good diet and organizing her time so that she does well in academics and other extracurricular activities, as well as her sports.” Deonne added that Josie decides how well she does and usually far exceeds any of her family’s expectations. Josie plans to attend the University of Arkansas to major in biochemistry. “I will be a member of the Honors College there and have been awarded a Sturgis Fellowship,” she said. “I have signed to run on the Razorbacks cross-country and track teams, and I’m looking forward to the challenge of competing at the collegiate level.”