Athlete of the Week: Mary Kauffman

Thursday’s weather was pretty lousy, but when it rains, 's star cross country runner Mary Kauffman enjoys getting out there and blasting her way through the raindrops.

“Oh I love to run in the rain, it’ s really great, I think,” Kauffman said. “You’re battling the elements, it’s hard, it’s uncomfortable, you’ve really got to push yourself and work your way through it.”

For Kauffman, the wetter and muddier the run, the better.

“I know it’s kind of strange, but it’s great to get soaking wet and splattered with mud in a practice run or a race,” the senior said.

Mary will be 18 in December and in addition to being a member of the cross-country and spring track teams; she’s a member of the GSA, works with the theater group and participates in the poetry slam. Mary runs the mile and two mile during the outdoor season.

The recent incident in Ohio knocked her for a loop when several exotic animals were killed after escaping from a zoo.

“That was just awful, heartbreaking, just so sad that they couldn’t find a way to save those animals,” Mary said. “Someday I would enjoy working with animals, raising them, caring for them, protecting them.”

Mary started out playing soccer at MHS during her freshman and sophomore years, but her good friend Chloe Heskett convinced her to take up running full time.

“Yeh, Chloe said I should start running, she really helped push me into it,” Kauffman said. “She was on the team last year, she’s in London now, we all miss her, but I stay in contact with her on Facebook and let her know how the team is going.”

Mary wrapped up her regular season last Monday against Swampscott, winning the race with a time of 17:11, pacing her team to a win over the Big Blue. The team finished the regular season 4-3 and Mary will be running in the Northeastern Conference Open on Saturday.

“Oh you have to push yourself, always trying to get better, work harder, some races I don’t get off to a good start because there’s so many people at the starting line, but I’m determined to get out there and pull ahead,” Mary said.

Mary’s favorite classes are art and English, and she’s interested in pursuing neurobiology and psychology in college, and has her eye on Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, N.Y.

“I really enjoy painting and drawing, words, technical theater, and I’m fascinated by the brain and how the brain works,” Kauffman said.

Mary lives on Curtis Street with her parents an older and a younger sister.

“I will miss the people in Marblehead so much when I’m done with school,” Mary said. “Marblehead is such a great place, so nice, on the ocean, you really couldn’t pick a better place to grow up than in Marblehead.”

The Mary Kauffman File:

Age – 17

Class - Senior

Favorite food – “Is chocolate considered a food? If not than pasta.”

Favorite TV show – Dr. Who

Favorite movie – Rocky Horror Picture Show

Favorite artist – My Chemical Romance

Most embarrassing song on my iPod – “I’ve got 52 Disney songs on there.”

Favorite athlete – Mia Hamm

Favorite team – New England Revolution

Dream – “I’d really love to run my own wildlife preservation and work with exotic animals.”