Will Shaughnessy of Brunswick has been one of the top freshman in the state this fall. Shaughnessy has a best of 17:33 for 5k to his credit so far in 2016. We caught up with him to ask him a few questions, check it out below.
I started running when I was probably about 9 or 10 in a town cross country program. My mom was a runner so she signed me up to see if I would like it too.
My first real race was a hilly 3/4 mile course, and I finished about 5th. I was a very competitive child, so the initial success prompted me to stick with it.
It went well for the most part. I had a bit of a rocky start, and didn't build up my miles the way I would have liked due to vacations, but I don't think it affected me much. I also attended the Slovenski XC camp which I would recommend to any serious runner.
You gave started off HS career with some top finishes, did you expect to have that kind of success already? I really had no idea what to expect, but I felt pretty confident based on my outdoor track season.
The workload would probably be the biggest difference. In middle school we ran like 10 miles a week, but now I'm doing much harder and longer work, and I love it.
My favorite workout is 400 meter repeats. My coach has a lot of confidence in this workout, so we do them every week. We do anywhere from 6-9 repeats, but we do them fairly hard. I think they really help with our finishing kick.
My goals for this season are to run sub 16:50 by the end of the season and to be the fastest freshman in the state. I also hope our team can place at states, but even if we don't I'm sure we will in the future, since we have a very young team.
What I love most about running is that you can be as successful as you wanna be, as long as you work hard, and remain dedicated.
My favorite food is my moms homemade mac and cheese.
I don't have many, I just eat a bagel about 2 hours before a race, and just try to have fun.
I am a loyal Saucony fan. I train in the Hurricane ISO 2, and race in the Havok XC.
The last movie I saw was Captain America: Civil War. It was awesome, Marvel never disappoints.
Something most people don't know about me is that I broke my collar bone flying off a swing when I was 2 years old.
Definitely my man Matthew Centrowitz winning gold in the 1500. I was flipping out the entire last lap.
Lastly, if you were stranded on an island with three things what would they be?
I would bring a sword, a book to read, and a mountain bike.
