EL SEGUNDO HERALD June 11, 2020 Page 3
School Spotlight
By Gregg McMullin
Graduation from high school is the culmination
of 13 years of schooling that started in
kindergarten. Had the pandemic not shutdown
our country, Friday night some 300 or so
El Segundo high school seniors would have
proudly walked through the highly decorated
arches on their way to their seats.
The Pomp and Circumstance march would
have serenaded the class of 2020 seniors, and
speeches would’ve filled the air with remarks
from school officials and students. One of
those students would’ve been Sophia Zago.
She would have flashed her signature smile
as she strolled up to receive her diploma in
front of thousands of well-wishers in the
stands celebrating all the seniors. Instead,
the outstanding cross country and track star
will celebrate at home with her family and
a select few friends.
Sophia is one of those people that has
always felt the journey was the success, not
the destination. She believes that focusing
on the journey shines the light on what a
person can get out of trying to reach one’s
goals. Her journey through the last 13 years
has been a ride she wouldn’t have missed. “I
love going to school and seeing my friends
between classes.”
Sophia’s senior year was marred by a
pandemic that closed her school and all
but ruined her final year of high school.
She says it was a challenge not seeing her
friends, but that didn’t break her spirit or her
friends, according to her. “I think the most
challenging part about not attending school
has been not seeing my friends, teachers,
and teammates daily. I think I will miss my
teammates the most because I have spent
the most time with them throughout the last
four years.”
With school a big part of Sophia’s life, she
says her favorite class is Medical Innovations,
the last class on the Biomedical Pathway. This
is another one of Sophia’s footsteps she is
taking along the way to becoming a highly
successful person long after she graduates.
She plans on attending the University of
California, Irvine this fall and join a good
friend and former Eagle teammate Nikki
Fulcomer on the cross country team. “My
major is in biological sciences, and I will be
competing on their cross country and track
teams as well.”
Sophia is a great student, but she is one
of the school’s top female cross country and
track athletes. She has been a three-year varsity
letterman for the Eagles in both XC and
Track. She is the school record holder in the
three mile, 800m, and was a member of the
4x800 and 4x1600 school records teams. She
is one of only three of the school’s distance
female runners to advance to the CIF finals;
James Matlosz and Nikki Fulcomer are the
others. She was the co-captain of the XC and
Track program this past season. She helped
lead the XC girl’s team to their best overall
team time finish at the state meet having
helped them to a podium finish in 2018.
Sophia leaves with the top five times in all
distances for both XC and Track programs.
She helped the Eagles secure their first girl’s
track league title in 2019. She is a remarkable
talent that still has a lot left in the tank
to help UCI this coming season. She admits
Sophia Zago’s Journey
Sophia Zago will continue her education at UC Irvine where she plans to run cross country too.
Sophia Zago (third from right) helped lead the Eagles to the 2019 Ocean League Cross Country title.
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