Ashburn, Va. — Specializing in one event was never in the cards for Sabrina Sokol. While she holds the Broad Run High School record in the 100-meter hurdle, in college, Sokol plans to compete in the 100-meter hurdle as well as the high jump, the shot put, the 200-meter run, nd the broad jump, the javelin throw, the 800-meter run, because beginning in the 2020-2021 academic year, Sokol will be suiting up to compete in the heptathlon for the United States Naval Academy.
“Anything I commit to I commit all the way, so the Midshipmen team can count on me to give it my all to train hard and win,” said Sokol, who considers the 100-meter hurdles, the high jump, and the javelin her top three events. “I hope to bring my experience to better myself and my teammates, so we can win some championships.”
Winning championships is nothing new for the Division I Midshipmen, who won their second straight Patriot League championship in outdoor track & field in 2019 as well as 2018-2019 indoor league championship, their first since 2011.
Led by Director of Track and Field Jamie Cook, the Midshipmen women’s team—including Stone Bridge graduate Erin Higgins and Loudoun County graduate Molly Chapman—was off to a great start in their 2020 outdoor season, besting six other teams in the San Diego Collegiate Challenge on March 7, before their season was cut short due to COVID-19.
Sokol and Higgins will get to push each other moving forward as both will compete in the heptathlon, an event Higgins placed fourth in at the Patriot League Outdoor Championship in 2019.
“Running has always been something that I had a talent for, but I didn’t just want to be good, I wanted to be great, so I trained very hard to be the best that I could be,” Sokol said. “My motivation comes from the teammates and friends I have made over the years and most importantly my family who takes me across the country to take part in national competitions.”
After travelling throughout the U.S. to compete, Sokol’s next trip will take her less than 70 miles away from the front door of her high school to an institution she never considered as a choice until her junior year.
“When I visited for an overnight stay, the campus was very beautiful and the community was filled with disciplined and competitive individuals,” Sokol said. “It was the only place I could really imagine myself attending to continue to better myself mentally, physically, and academically.”
Sokol—who has been named first team All-LoCo in both track & field and cross country—is used to competing at the top of the field, and she’ll look to continue that streak when she heads to Annapolis in the fall.
“I have loved training with the coaches at Broad Run and with the team,” Sokol said. “Though the season was cut short this year, I managed to break the 100-meter hurdle school record my junior year, and I hope to break more records as I continue my academic and athletic career at the Naval Academy.”
