Thronson Finds New Home On Rocky Top

By Preston Jones; UTSports.com

The road less traveled predictably takes much consideration and evaluation before a conclusion can be reached. Traveling 1,890 miles from Spokane, Washington, to Knoxville, Tennessee, figured to be one of those conclusions for Katie Thronson.

For her, the decision to commit to Tennessee came significantly easier than that of a typical student-athlete.

"My high school coach and my parents, when I was being recruited to a couple of different places, always told me: 'Go wherever you feel most comfortable. If you had a career-ending injury, you want to go to the place where you're still going to feel at home.'"

Katie knew from the start of her recruitment that she wanted to explore a different part of the country. She ventured south and fell in love with Rocky Top.

"Tennessee ended up being it," Thronson said. "When I was here, my mom said: 'This is where you're going to end up.' That meant a lot to me. That's why I came."

Thronson knew she was born to run at a young age. She was around eight years old when, in the middle of a Washington blizzard, she told her father, "'Dad, we're going to go run on the red thing (Lewis and Clark High School's track) by Albertsons.' It ended up being my high school's home track. We went and ran a half-mile and that was it. Running was my thing."

Unlike a stereotypical freshman, Thronson arrived at UT with an immense amount of confidence. This can be credited to her upbringing in the state of Washington, where some of the nation's top high school runners reside.

"It was hard. It was definitely hard. The girls (in Washington) are not easy to compete against," Thronson stated. "It was just one of those things where you have to play the long game. It's a marathon, not a sprint."

Thronson's confidence comes from being goal-oriented. She puts her mind to what she knows she can achieve and gets it done.

"My freshman year, my high school coach and I set a goal after a certain race," Thronson said. "I said I want to be a state champion. We set a four-year plan for that and it worked out."

Now, Thronson has translated her skill set to the college level, with six top-five finishes in eight career races at Tennessee.

This came as no surprise to head coach Beth Alford-Sullivan. She's been impressed with Thronson ever since she stood out at the 2017 Foot Locker Championships in San Diego, California, as a high school senior.

"Katie made the Foot Locker Championships her senior year and my assistant coach, at the time, went out there and recruited her," Sullivan recalled. "We started the recruiting process. She came out for a visit, got very excited about things, and ended up a Tennessee Vol."

The year prior, as a junior, a similar trip to San Diego in December of 2016 stood out to Thronson, especially, as it confirmed that she wanted to run collegiately.

"That junior year was an incredible experience. I came home from [Foot Locker Regionals] and talked to my parents. I said, 'Listen, we're going to do this. I'm going to run in college. I don't care what it takes.' I called my coach and said, 'Set me up a good training plan for the summer. I'm going to do it. I'm going to do every mile of it and I'm going to do even more.'"

The Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology major is pursuing a minor in public health, with hopes of becoming an interventional radiologist. Although she admits that she's not married to this life plan, she is adamant about her love for the city of Knoxville.

"I loved Knoxville because it was new, and it was bright, and it was shiny," Thronson said. "Overall, I love the city of Knoxville. I've loved getting to know the community of Knoxville."

It's not the custom for freshmen to start dominating so early in their career, but that's exactly what Thronson has done. Most of that can be accredited to her coach and her teammates. Thronson battled being homesick early on, but Coach Sullivan helped ease the transition to college.

"Honestly, my coach, she made sure to check in and make sure I was doing okay. She kept my training fairly similar to what it was in high school. She just amped up the quality of it so that I wasn't getting injured. I was maintaining what I was doing. I was increasing my training, in the quality of it. I came in and was able to compete and contribute."

Her teammates also made a substantial difference in her freshman year success.

"Anytime during a workout when I was wanting to drop off and just kind of sandbag it, bring it in slower, they kept me in it and that was what made the difference," Thronson said.

Thronson's sense of calmness entering a race is one of the characteristics that sets her apart. In her senior year of high school, she was accustomed to controlling a race and being in the front. Now, she maintains a mindset geared for racing through the pack.

"Going into a race, I try not to think. I've noticed that if I do think when I race, all of the negative thoughts start to creep in. If you shut it off entirely, it doesn't affect you. Most of the time, I just get onto a pack and hang on, grit my teeth, stay in there as long as I can and hope for the best."

Thronson understands that the mental aspect of cross country is vital to her success.

"The phrase is: 'The first seven seconds are free,' because of adrenaline," Thronson said. "That's where you find your position. After that, I like to settle in, get into a rhythm, shut off my brain, find a group, find Megan (Murray) normally, latch onto them and just be pulled until the race changes and it's go time."

As a freshman, Thronson excelled at last season's SEC Championships where she finished 14th out of 138 runners.

Current Tennessee senior, Megan Murray, finished 18^th at the conference meet, which is fitting considering her and Thronson's relationship. The duo typically looks to stick together during races.

"We all try to do what we can to encourage each other along," Thronson said. "Even if it's just a little elbow nudge or a thumbs up. It's something small so we're not expending too much energy, but so we know that each other is there. We have the phrase: Look for the orange butts. That's how we find each other during the races."

The co-captain's performances early in her career are proof that Coach Sullivan is working to change the narrative that cross country is only used to prepare for the track season.

"Cross country is a viable, viable season," said Sullivan. "We recruit specifically to do well in it. We create a schedule that's very nationally competitive and we take it seriously. We recruit kids that can be effective in it. We know we're preparing all the time for the track seasons, but we're in this season and take it very seriously.

"Our goal is to reach the national championships at this school. We have a rich history. It's been a long time since we've been good at the national level in cross country, but this program will definitely continue to strive to be the best it can within the SEC and beyond. I think we know that what we do in the training cycle through the fall season of cross country will help us for track, but we will also prepare to compete very hard this fall."

Although just a sophomore, Thronson has solidified herself as a leader for the Vols.

"Katie's a natural leader," Sullivan said. "She leads quietly, but effectively. She motivates her teammates by her work ethic, but also by a very positive vibe. She's a young person that quietly makes sure that she connects with each team member, encouraging them to always be prepared, always do their best, and really keeping the positive energy going forward. She's just a quality young person."

Her continued growth in cross country has helped her become a more well-rounded track athlete, especially when it comes to endurance.

She recorded a personal-best time in the indoor 3000m at the Husky Classic in February 2019. She also set career-bests in the 800m, 1500m, and 5000m at the SEC Outdoor Championships in the spring of 2019.

After a tremendous freshman campaign, Thronson still isn't satisfied. She came out of the gates quickly to start her second season on Rocky Top, recording a second-place finish at the Tennessee Tri-Star Cross Country Challenge and secured her first collegiate win at the Lady Vols' mid-September meet at the University of Virginia's Cavalier Classic.

Through it all, Thronson hasn't felt the need to model her own running style after anyone else. She's determined to write her own story.

"I feel like if I were to model my training after another athlete," Thronson said, "it doesn't work for everyone and it can become very frustrating if someone else's training isn't working for you. That's why I just like to keep myself in my own lane and worry about my own training."

As proficient as Thronson's freshman year was, she believes she has improved from year one to year two, feeling more comfortable with a full year of experience under her belt.

"I will say, that first initial month of coming into collegiate training, I did have a phone call with my dad saying, 'I don't know if I can do this, dad.' But then, once my body adjusted, I feel like I've progressed in my training, especially over the summer when I got to train for U.S. Juniors and it was just me and Coach Sullivan every day," Thronson recalled. "I really got individualized, one-on-one training. That's where I feel like my training progressed and I took that step up to more elite, higher-level training – more mileage, higher quality."

Thronson is setting a new standard for what it means to run cross country at Tennessee. She knows what it's going to take to bring the Vols to an elite status in the SEC.

She will continue to lead by example for the Lady Vols. Her mentality will never waver. She knows that she's a talented runner but doesn't take anything for granted. The Spokane native is now thriving on Rocky Top, and she feels right at home.

University of Tennessee Athletics

Players Mentioned

Megan Murray

Katie Thronson

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