One girl, three sports, and twelve varsity letters. Sophomore Courtney McAlindon runs on FHC’s Track and Cross Country teams as well skis for the FHC ski team. By the end of senior year, Courtney will have twelve varsity letters for all the sports she has participated in. A lot of students would find school and multiple sports difficult to juggle, but through everything, Courtney does it with a radiant smile.

Because of her busy schedule, one would think that Courtney would be exhausted or even complain when life got too hectic. A close teammate of Courtney’s says that this is not the case. Sophomore Kayley Reynolds has known Courtney for three years now, and they met through their shared passion for skiing. Courtney, Kayley mentioned, is always incredibly hard working and positive.

“She can wipe things off really easily,” Kayley said. “If she falls, she can care about it for a quick second, and she’ll wipe it off.”

Although skiing takes up a lot of Courtney’s time, she still makes an effort to make sure she is keeping up with her school work. She keeps up the reputation she has of a hard working student.

“She manages which days she skis, and she goes to see her teachers after school to get on top of it,” Kayley said.

Courtney also has a great support team to help her when she needs it. Between her friends, teammates, coaches, and family, Courtney is willing to tackle any obstacle knowing she has a strong support system that help her when she’s down.

“[My family] really motivates me and helps me,” Courtney said.

Because she has such a big support team, she is also able to support to her teammates and friends when they need it. She is known for her happy attitude and her ability to brighten up everyone’s bad days.

“We always run together, laugh and cry together, and support each other,” said senior Katie Allen said, who is a fellow cross country runner.

Through sports, Courtney has made many strong friendships with her teammates. Since Courtney’s freshmen year, Katie and Courtney have been inseparable, which can be accredited to their strong bond through cross country.

“She is like the little sister I never had,” Katie said. “I am very thankful that I met her”.

Although it is a lot of work, the time Courtney spends on each extracurricular is very rewarding. She has no regrets about joining the numerous activities, and she expressed that she is truly happy to be involved in everything that she does.

“[The best part about it all is] the people and getting out and being active with a bunch of people that feel the same way [about that sport],” Courtney said.

Courtney is living proof that sports can shape who a person develops to be. She has been doing these sports for only a couple years now, but even those couple years are paying off immensely.

“She has grown into a great young lady with a great ability to focus on achieving her goals,” Track Coach and Assistant Cross Country Coach Joel Harner said.

With her positive energy and optimistic outlook, Courtney brightens up every workout she attends and every person’s day that she encounters.

“When her and teammate Susannah Bennett are together, you can always count on their smiling faces to make practice fun” Harner said.

Courtney is thought very highly of by many different people. Her work ethic and positive outlook on situations are the keys to all of her success.

“I expect her to be a very successful woman in whatever profession she chooses, and feel she has a promising opportunity with her downhill skiing to pursue at the college level,” Harner said.