Tommy Herebic will be joining the roster of Nebraksa Wesleyan University this fall. Photo by Alan Versaw.
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Tommy Herebic's Personal Best Marks:
1600 meters: 4:38.73
3200 meters: 10:03.42
5K cross country: 16:19.4
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Tell us about your decision to attend Nebraska Wesleyan. What made that stand above other college options for you.
The coach, the team, and the town really convinced me to go to Nebraska Wesleyan. Coach Bulling focused on more than just running. He wanted to build me up as a person. The team had such great chemistry and seemed like one big happy family. Lincoln had so much to do. There was definitely a great vibe going on their and I know that Lincoln is thriving. The University of Nebraska Lincoln is right down the street which is pretty cool. I could attend some of their sporting events.
Do you have a planned major yet at NWU?
I am currently undecided, but I want to become a firefighter. Although firefighting has no specific degree, I might focus on a business or communications degree.
In Josh Trahan and Kelly Christensen you've worked under two very high profile coaches. Tell us a story or two about what it's been like.
Coach Trahan was actually my health teacher. So it was pretty cool to talk running during class. He definitely had some funny track-related stories. Coach Christensen is a really neat guy. It's been a privilege to be coached by such a successful man. He is my guidance counselor at school and I was his teacher aid during the cross country season so he had me deal with all of the sorting of uniforms and other various things. What is nice is that I can always pop into his office and just let him know what is on my mind. Since he is a psychology major, he can basically read you like a book and he knows exactly what to say. Plus, he acts just like any of us high schoolers would at practice: crazy.
You guys have destroyed people in cross country and you've destroyed people in track. What's the magic?
The magic really comes from the coaching and the chemistry. We are honored to have a D2 National Champion as a coach as well as an assistant coach with plenty of coaching years under his belt. They push us to our full potential and believe in every single one of us. They have season plans for every athlete on the team. The chemistry plays a big role too. We hang out a lot outside of school and practice. It is pretty common to have a team movie night or a sleepover (guys only of course). Some athletes have hot tubs or plenty of video games too. Jacob Tellez, a senior on the team, built his own hot tub in his back yard and his house is within a running distance for a cold, snowy day. It is awesome to be at Palmer Ridge because the running program is really special and will be very successful in the years to come.
Do you have a favorite memory from high school cross country/track and field to date?
Winning the state title. That was one of the best days of my life. I have run the Stampede course eight times in my high school running career, and I would say that the state meet this year was the hardest of them all. But all the pain and sweat was worth it in the end. I remember when the whole team was gathered by our tent just congratulating each other and reflecting on the race (we didn't know we won). But soon enough, a parent yelled out, "You guys won!!!!!" A couple of us actually started crying tears of joy and the others were just dancing around. The Niwot tent was actually right next to ours and their guys team was all there. After wiping the tears away, we went over there and shook their hands and thanked them for competing with us. We stopped at Old Chicago after the meet. We placed the trophy on the table that we sat at and after gobbling down a bunch of pizza, we all admitted how tired we were and how it hasn't hit us yet. Both of the girls team and the guys team went over to someones house to hot tub and watch a movie. We brought a bunch of junk food. I remember how happy all of us were. It was really nice to hang out with them and just reflect such an amazing day that we will never forget.
You have less than two months left of high school. What's still on the table to see accomplished?
I want to run in the state meet. I have not run at state yet. I am looking at qualifying in both the 1600 and the 3200. My goals are to be well under 4:30 in the 1600 and under 9:30 in the 3200. I am feeling good. I am hungry for whatever comes at me.