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CASA RUNNER'S TIME TO SHINE
SENIOR HAS FILLED MANY ROLES ON CROSS COUNTRY TEAM -- NOW SHE'S A LEADER
DATE: Friday, September 15, 2006
BYLINE: By NATHAN WRIGHT
FOR THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
SECTION: PETALUMA
Nicole Lee is a leader on the Casa Grande cross country team and has been running for three years.
By JEFF KAN LEE / The Press Democrat
Nicole Lee probably would have run cross country her freshman year -- if she had known it existed.
``I had no clue,'' she said. ``I didn't even know there was a program like cross country.''
Once she discovered the team, she quickly became one of the faces for the entire program.
The 17-year-old Casa Grande senior is entering her third year on the varsity squad and is lauded by her
coach for her leadership and work ethic.
``She's a good kid to build a program around,'' coach Carl Triola said. ``For consistency's sake, she's
always been one of my top five runners.
``She has a great attitude and is very dependable,'' he added. ``She's one of the hardest working runners
I've ever coached.''
Lee has filled many roles for the Gauchos in her tenure on the team. As a sophomore, she made the varsity
squad and helped anchor a team led by the exciting Ashton LeSieur.
``She was like a mom to us,'' Lee said. ``She had a talent and was excited to be out there. She passed
that to all of us and made us better runners.''
As a junior, Lee stepped up as the Gauchos' top runner to start the season, and she finished 17th overall
at the Sonoma County League championship.
Lee also is a three-year member of Casa's track team.
This season she is one of only two seniors, helping to lead a group of 42 girls in the program.
Two of the newcomers are Jacque Taylor and Dominique Ratto, freshmen who already are emerging as two of
the top runners in the region.
With the new members on the team, Triola is looking for good things in Lee's senior season.
``We should be in the top three in league, and beyond that we'll have to see how the season progresses,''
he said. ``We've always been on the verge of really great things as a team, and I think it would be a great
thing for her to be part of.''
Lee calls the additions to the team exciting.
``It's amazing to see so much potential right after school,'' she said. ``Their enthusiasm spreads
throughout the team. I love watching them run.''
While Lee is looking forward to her final season, running isn't the only activity keeping her busy.
She is active in Girl Scouts, and has already earned her Gold Award, the highest ranking available to
Girl Scouts.
To earn the award, Lee completed a service project at a Petaluma transitional home, decorating and
furnishing two bathrooms and an entryway.
She's also active at Petaluma Valley Hospital, working as a junior volunteer on Sundays, a job she's held
since her freshman year.
``It was just something I wanted to do,'' she said. ``I really want to work in the medical field when I
get older.''
She hasn't decided how or what she'll do in the medical field, but she plans to attend college in the Bay
Area next year.
``I don't want to stay at home,'' she said, ``but I want to be close enough so I can drive home on the
weekends.''
You can reach Correspondent Nathan Wright at 694-4053 or nwright01@gmail.com.