Sedona Red Rock Middle School cross-country runner and eighth-grader Juni Spielman finished the school’s inaugural season of cross-country with an undefeated record in the season’s five meets, including the Wednesday Sept. 25 championship in Camp Verde. 

“It takes a special someone to be able to do something like that,” Sedona Red Rock High School cross-country coach Cody McKesson said. “Juni isn’t motivated, she’s driven to succeed. I always compare it to a candle versus a bonfire. You can’t be motivated because that’s like a candle that burns out — Juni is a bonfire.”

 “Cross-country changed my perspective on running,” Spielman said. “I’ve always run to feel better, but having a real coach and structured workouts made it really fun. I’m super-competitive, and this gave me a way to express that.” 

“A couple of times, I had to run extra because the course markings were wrong, and I thought I wasn’t going to win,” Spielman said about her competition experiences. “But it worked out in the end.” 

She added that she felt those experiences prepared her for future races. The event distances gradually increase during the middle school season, beginning at 1.5 miles and eventually exceeding 2 miles. 

“I don’t think I thought about [how I was going undefeated] until the last meet ended,” Spielman said. “Because I didn’t want to jinx myself. I was just treating each meet like the first one and then [after] the last one, I was like, ‘Wow, I just did that.’” Spielman has been involved in sports for most of her life. 

A swimmer since the age of six, she competes with the Sedona Race Pace Club throughout the year. 

“She hasn’t met a sport that she doesn’t like,” her mother Meg Haesloop said. “Her main loves have always been basketball and swimming. But running is … an unexpected new love.” Spielman said that running has brought her a new kind of joy. 

“When I run fast, it feels like I’m flying,” Spielman said. “It’s an amazing feeling.” 

She currently trains four times a week, running from three to six miles in addition to continuing her swim practices. 

“She’s a great breaststroker and she’s about nine seconds away from the sectional cut,” Race Pace Coach Sean Emery said. 

“You see the way that [Spielman] puts joy into everything she does and it’s a pleasure to watch,” Sedona-Oak Creek Superintendent Tom Swaninger said. 

“[I’m] incredibly impressed with the quality of the coaching and the sense of community that has been cultivated in this middle school cross-country program by coach McKesson,” Haesloop said. “The building of the athletic program is such a boon for our community.”

McKesson said his goal for the second year of the program is to increase student recruitment. 

“I told everyone their job is to get two of their friends out and get the numbers and have a team,” McKesson said. “That’s the ultimate goal, have a team, not individuals where they’re running for themselves.” 

Spielman is also a member of the school’s Interact Club and is on the student council’s Spirit Committee. 

“Juni is one of the toughest, hardworking student athletes that I’ve ever met, her grit and her determination, coupled with her joy found in competing, is second to none,” Swaninger said. “The way that she competes in swimming and with running, the way that she just approaches life. I’m really proud of her present and extremely excited to see what her future holds.”