Evans’s Simone Rojas ready to run with the Dawgs

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Evans senior Simone Rojas wasn’t always a cross country runner, picking up the sport in 6th grade.

She also wasn’t always a Georgia fan, as her parents cheer for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. But as she gets ready to head off to college, she’ll do so as a cross country runner for the Bulldogs.

Rojas didn’t always have Georgia on her radar. She didn’t even think she wanted to run at a big school. It wasn’t until she went to visit Athens that she realized that’s where she wanted to be.

“When I went for my official visit, everything just kind of clicked in place,” she said. “I loved the coaches. I loved the campus. I loved the team. I thought I would really thrive there.”

Back in December, Rojas made it official, signing with the Dawgs. That freed her up to focus solely on running in her last year at Evans, and chase another dream. A state title.

“That’s something I wanted to do since 6th grade,” she said. “I wanted to do it in middle school and it didn’t happen. So you put your head down and you keep working and it started coming together.”

In her fourth and final trip to Carrollton for the GHSA state championships, everything came together. Rojas won the state championship in a time of just under 19 minutes.

“My heart was so full when I crossed the finish line,” she said. “I went and ran to my parents and I was crying. They were crying. It was like I made it. This is what I wanted to do.”

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