WINNECONNE, Wis. — There isn’t an off-season for long-distance runner Sophie Yetter.
“I love running. That’s a big thing for me. My heart is so full when I’m able to get out for a run, get in a good workout," said Yetter.
She qualified individually for state all four years in cross country and three times so far in track, with one more opportunity this spring.
Kraig Western coaches both sports and calls her "a special athlete."
“Incredible teammate, it goes to show when she’s elected captain. I don’t think I’ve heard an athlete talk about her in a negative light or a fan, a parent," said Western.
She ran on a state championship cross-country team as a freshman, and her letter jacket is loaded with medals, but teammate and friend Mairin Syth calls Yetter humble with a great sense of humor.
“She is such a good leader. She always included people in team bonding and was always there for words of encouragement before and after races. If anyone was feeling down, she was there to encourage the team," said Syth.
Yetter belongs to many school clubs like Student Council and National Honors Society. She also helps distribute meals at a warming shelter, which is one of the ways she gives back to the community. And on top of all this, she's a straight-A student in the classroom.
Yetter plans on attending the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota next year to continue running track and cross country. She’ll also study mental health, which had a major impact on her own life.
“I was actually institutionalized when I was in middle school. I was in a psychiatric mental health center,” explained Yetter. “That’s when I first learned about psychiatric mental health nurses. They were the people that took care of me when I was there. They inspired me. I was like, ‘okay, I know what I want to do now after I met these people. I want to be like them.’”
Yetter is open about her experience with performance anxiety and even addressed her teammates.
“Which was a pretty tough conversation,” said Western. “To have someone that mature and that open and say, here’s my issue, performance anxiety. The pressure she put on herself was immense.”
The experience helped her develop strategies to overcome the pressures she faced.
“As much as going through treatment was difficult at the time, it’s completely changed my life. It saved me. I’m so grateful that I did so I can talk about it very positively," said Yetter.
Developing an understanding of the mind-body connection helped Yetter capture four individual school distance records. She cherishes her appearances at state over the years and recalls her emotions during those big events.
"I'm coming down the home stretch, super excited, obviously exhausted, but it's so amazing because of all of the hard work that went into it. 'You're like okay, this is where it pays off,'" said Yetter.
While her father admires her accomplishments, he said there’s much more to Yetter than her achievements in distance running.
“She’s just an enjoyable, helpful person, and she has an uncanny sense of how other people feel," said Jeff Yetter.
Those around her call Yetter a role model for other students.
“She’s been our babysitter for my kids, so that tells you the trust I have in her," said Western. "I want my girls to see that, and be like that.”
Regardless of what happens in the spring track season, Yetter has been influential during her time in high school and seems to be on the right path to success in college and beyond.
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