VINDICATOR ALL-STARS Girls Cross Country

ANDRA SANDERS
School/grade: South Range, sophomore.
Statistics and accomplishments: First place at Tiffin Carnival (Open Division) race, Western Reserve Invitational, Inter-County League meet and district meet; second place at Mahoning County meet; fourth place at regional meet; 12th place at state meet. Earned All-ICL, All-State and Academic All-State honors.
Name someone who has been a positive influence on your athletic career: So many people have contributed to the success of my career, that it's difficult to choose one person. There is one person, though, whose love for running has had a very strong and positive influence on my career. South Range assistant coach Brian Bomberger introduced me to running when I was in junior high, and has been by my side ever since. Not only is he knowledgeable about running, including diet, training and strategies, he has also taught me a great deal about life. He is a great coach and a great friend, and has truly influenced me to be the positive and determined athlete that I am today.
Best memory from the season: Throughout my 2003 cross country season, there were so many great memories made through practices and after every race. But they all led up to one major one: Achieving my goal of standing up on the podium at the state meet, and standing right behind one of the nation's top runners, Sunni Olding, was a complete honor and definitely a memory that I will never forget.
Something about yourself that people don't know or would be surprised to learn: I ran track in junior high and loved the sport, but I had never run cross country. I had no knowledge of what it was about, and at the time I was really into volleyball. After seeing me excel in track, the cross country coaches kept talking to me and really wanted me to give it a try. All of my best friends who I have been playing volleyball with, of course, were going to play in high school. So I had to make a major choice. But once I started running, I knew it was for me and that I made the right decision.
Sanders' biography was omitted from last week's Vindicator All-Star cross country team.