COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY: WAVERLY'S VAUGHN SIGNS TO RUN CROSS COUNTRY AT SUNY COBLESKILL (2 PHOTOS) (2024-04-26)

By TIM BIRNEY
Valley Sports Report
WAVERLY — When Waverly senior Elizabeth Vaughn visited Cobleskill it was as if she had already been there, and that’s because she had been, when her sister Reagan was being recruited to run at the college.

“My sister went there for a year, and I just fell in love with it when I went with her,” said Vaughn.

“After I figured out what I was interested in … I love cows and animals, so I figured it wouldn’t be a bad idea to check out Cobleskill again.

“The second I was there again, I just knew that I wanted to go there — the place, the energy, it just felt right,” added Vaughn, who will major in Animal Sciences with the intent to become a Veterinarian.

Vaughn recently made it official, signing a National Letter-of-Intent to run cross country at SUNY Cobleskill during a brief ceremony in the high school learning center.

Reagan Vaughn, Elizabeth’s older sister, graduated from Waverly in 2019, and ran cross country at Cobleskill in the fall of that year for coach Mitchell Tomaszkiewicz.

Elizabeth Vaughn said the coach was also a big draw for her.

“He still talked to my family, so he was keeping an eye on me, and already trying to recruit me,” laughed Vaughn.

“It’s a very good program, I am very excited to run there.

“It’s a Division III school, so it won’t be as stressful, so I think I’ll be able to enjoy running cross country, which is all that I want because I love the sport,” added Vaughn. “I can’t get rid of it.”

Vaughn said her biggest priority is getting healthy before she gets to Cobleskill.

“I sill have a bit of a quad injury going on … I’ll try to heal that up, and just run, and do what I can to get ready for Cobleskill,” she said.

Waverly cross country coach Nate Culver has no doubt Vaughn will be successful at Cobleskill.

“Elizabeth taking her years of experience, and the passion she has for running is the biggest thing that will make her successful,” he said.

“Her coach is super-personable, and very inviting, so that will ease the nerves of going to the next level.

“She had a (future) Cobleskill teammate come in for the signing to support her, and show her she’s part of the family already, which I thought was very nice,” added Culver. “I think it’s going to be great for her.”

Culver also believes Vaughn running at the next level could help his program, which is still producing quality runners, but has struggled with numbers.

“Recruiting for cross country or distance for track is not easy,” said Culver. “We have a lot of kids who are capable, but just won’t come out.

“So to have a Wolverine do so well throughout her career here, and take it to the next level is great four our program.

“It’s a huge asset that she carries on like Sheridan Talada, Cora Smith, Liz Fritzen, and her sister Reagan (Vaughn) … just within the last five to eight years, we’ve had quite a few carry on as distance runners at the collegiate level,” Culver added.

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IN PHOTO 1: From left: Jen Vaughn (mother), Elizabeth Vaughn, Greg Vaughn (father), and Reagan Vaughn (sister). IN PHOTO 2: Waverly cross country coach Nate Culver and Elizabeth Vaughn. … PHOTO PROVIDED.