July 20, 2017
By Megan Golden
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — University of Notre Dame women’s track senior Samantha Murray spoke with student reporters from Goshen College’s Write on Sports camp on Thursday.
The Write on Sports camp for aspiring journalists made its annual visit to Notre Dame’s campus as part of its week-long itinerary. Thirteen campers participated in a press conference with Murray and men’s basketball junior Rex Pflueger as well as a panel discussion with Fighting Irish Media representatives.
Murray, an All-American middle-distance runner, fielded the junior high students’ many questions about her track career and her academic career. The duo spoke about their goals and dreams as student-athletes, and they provided the group with advice for their future.
The campers publish sports features on the Write on Sports blog following each press conference they attend. Below is an excerpt from camper Deecon Hill’s feature on Murray.
Written by Deecon Hill & Edited by Megan Golden
Samantha Murray, a runner from Notre Dame, started her career in Defiance. She started running in seventh grade, but it wasn’t until high school that she started getting national attention. She received attention because she got third at state in the 800m in her sophomore year of high school. Then, in her junior year, she got second place in the 800m, and finally, in her senior year, she won the 800m.
She had a great year her senior year of high school, but then she had to decide what school to attend. She narrowed it down to three choices: Michigan, Brown and Notre Dame. Eventually, she decided to go to Notre Dame. At Notre Dame, they changed her role by having her run on the cross country team in addition to the track and field team. Although she runs a lot, she has never run a marathon.
Some of her advice to kids was, “You will get beat; you’ll get beat a lot.” That ultimately means to never give up. Then, she talked about how to not get down if you lose in a race and how to keep mentally strong. Samantha says to keep her calm before races, she likes to listen to Katy Perry’s music. Also, something that helps her stay calm is going to the south quad at Notre Dame.
Q & A with Samantha Murray…
What made you choose ND?
Sam: Notre Dame has the whole package. It’s an excellent academic school and it’s really competitive academically. There is also a really beautiful faith aspect of going to school here.
How do you balance athletics and academics?
Sam: At a school like Notre Dame you have to work really hard because you professors push you really hard. A big part of it is getting the right amount of sleep and there is a lot of time management that goes into as well. If you aren’t getting enough sleep and not getting enough meals then you’re not going to be able to perform in either part of your life.
Best sports accomplishment?
Sam: When I was in high school I won the state championship in the 800 my senior year. There was a lot of crying because the year before I was second and before that I came in third. I got to my senior year and it was my last race of my high school career and I had worked really hard to get there, I was really excited to win.
–ND–