Sophomore Kate Avery has made an immediate impact on the Iona cross country team. This is Avery’s first year on the team, but she does not lack experience. The Durham, England native has been named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Runner of the Week three times and the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Runner of the Week twice this season.

Avery decided to come to Iona because of the Maroon & Gold’s successful cross country program and her lifelong desire to live in New York.

As a freshman, she was unable to race for the Gaels because she was deemed ineligible by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Now that she has been cleared, she aspires to be the best runner on the team through hard work.

Avery’s dedication shines through in her rigorous practice schedule. She practices twice a day, even though her team only meets to run six times a week. Before running, she likes to listen to music. To stay in excellent shape, she maintains a strict diet throughout the year.

“Kate is a big talent and a big contributor to the program and its future,” cross country head coach Ricardo Santos said. “We definitely missed out on her last year with her not being able to compete.”

Prior to coming to Iona, Avery ran for the Great Britain Athletics team at The Shildon Club in England. While with the British team, she gained valuable training and experience. She competed in the European Junior Championships held in Serbia. In addition to this competition, she traveled to Kenya for six weeks to train with athletic teams from across the globe.

Her experiences have been very successful. She has captured three European medals. Her fastest time in the 3K has been 8:58 and 5K in 15:35.

At Iona, she was happy and eager to start a new chapter in her career. Coming from a foreign country and adjusting to a new lifestyle has not been easy. Avery says she has been learning something about the American culture every day.

Avery finds American humor to be very different from British humor. She has been pleased by the open-mindedness of Americans, especially people at Iona. Though her experience in the United States have been good so far, she is homesick.

“I really miss the food in Europe. I probably sound like a stereotypical Brit but I miss the fish and chips,” Avery said. “The chocolate is so much better [in Britain]. You haven’t tried good chocolate until you’ve had a Galaxy bar, which is available there.”

This year, she has finished in the top ten in all three races that she has competed in. She posted the best time at the Br. Doyle Meet of Champions. At the Brooks Paul Short Invitational, she came in fourth place and was Iona’s top performer. In the Pre-National Invitational at Indiana State University, Avery led the Gaels, finishing ninth.

Avery and the Gaels look for their ninth straight MAAC Championship on Nov. 1 at Van Cortlandt Park.

With Avery on the Iona cross country team, the future looks bright for the program.