JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) – When Science Hill junior Sonny Egan was little, he couldn’t wait to lace up his cleats.
“Originally, I was a soccer player all through elementary school,” she said.
However, her soccer career ended in junior high school.
“I had spinal fusion surgery in seventh grade,” she explained.
That’s not easy for anyone, let alone a teenager. The surgery, performed at Shriners Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a success. But there were challenges on the way home.
“Recovery was certainly difficult,” she recalled. “Just going back to school was hard.”
Fortunately, Egan had a vast support network by his side.
“My parents, my friends, my family,” she said.
Although she regained her fitness in many aspects of her life, she was unable to return to the pitch, at least for the time being.
“I wasn’t allowed to play contact sports for a year, and that’s how I started running,” she said.
Even after contact was allowed, cross country quickly became her go-to sport.
“Honestly, it feels really good,” she said. “It clears my mind.”
“I got better over time, but it was definitely my friends and the community around me that got me through,” she added. “We have deep conversations and laugh a lot…It’s fun.”
Her first few seasons with the Toppers were, in her own words, a roller coaster. But there are more ups than downs.
“It feels good to see myself growing in areas I never thought I would grow in,” she said.
Egan also competes in the 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter track events.
“It’s kind of like cross (country),” she said. “You still have encouragement and bonding and things like that.”
Regardless of the distance she’s running, there’s one thing she’s learned from the sport above all else.
“When life doesn’t go your way, find the positive,” she said. “That’s what I learned from cross country and track and field, because you don’t always have a great race. You have to find the positives in it.”
In her spare time, Ms. Egan is active in her church and in fundraising for Shriners Hospitals for Children.
“I just want to give back to those who have helped me along my journey and help other children and their needs,” she said. .
After graduating from high school, I hope to continue running in college and study occupational therapy.
“It’s to help other kids get through this.”
