Trib HSSN athletes of the week: Mars’ Zachary Leachman, Freedom’s Jayden Sharpless

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, October 16, 2018 | 6:12 PM

Previous Next

Previous Next

Zachary Leachman

School: Mars

Class: Junior

Sport: Cross country

Claim to fame: Leachman battled through a rainy, muddy course at Brush Creek Park and won the MAC championship with a time of 17 minutes, 18 seconds Oct. 11. Leachman also won the Bill Lenox Invitational hosted by Slippery Rock University on Oct. 6.

How would you rate how you’ve fared during your meets to this point in the season?

I was expecting to be in the top 10 in my first few races and I accomplished that. Throughout the season, I’m improving even more. My goal was to win the last two, and I did.

What races do you have on the horizon, and how do you hope to finish?

I have the Tri-State Coaches Association Invitational at California University of Pa. and the WPIAL meet the following week, also at Cal U. This week, I want to go out and run the course to see how it goes because I haven’t run it in a few years. It’ll give me a gauge of where I should be for the WPIALs. My goal is the top three or top five.

What is a typical week of training like for you?

Right now, I run about 40 miles a week. I’ll have one speed workout and one tempo workout. The rest is just easy running. I just make sure I eat healthy the night before a race and maybe I’ll have some extra carbs.

What are you going to do in the coming months and into next year to ensure you’re a top runner in the WPIAL during your senior season?

I’m going to need to increase my mileage over the summer. I haven’t been running over the summer. That’s where you improve. I definitely need to run over the winter more, too. I usually just do weights during the winter.

Jayden Sharpless

School: Freedom

Class: Freshman

Sport: Soccer

Claim to fame: Sharpless scored five goals and added and assist and helped Freedom win 10-0 over Riverside in Section 3-A on Oct. 8. In the process, Sharpless broke the school record for goals scored in a season. Sharpless also scored four goals in a 11-1 win over Mohawk on Oct. 10 and had three more against Riverside on Oct. 11. Heading into the week, Sharpless has scored 50 goals this season.

“She’s an outstanding scoring forward with very deceptive speed,” coach Colin Williams said. “She’s a very special player, and it takes a special person to stop her from scoring.”

How did it feel to break that school record as a freshman?

It was very special to me. It’s been a goal that I’ve had for a long time. I always wanted to break records. I realized a couple games before that I had scored a lot of goals this season. But I didn’t realize how close I was to the record the game that I broke it.

What is the ultimate goal at Freedom this season?

I definitely hope as a team to win a WPIAL championship and make it far into the state playoffs. I want to continue to scoring a lot of goals along the way.

What are some of the biggest differences you’ve noticed between high school soccer and the various clubs and other teams you have played for?

High school is a different level. It’s not better or worse, but the people playing on the field are different. I never played with the players on my team, so it’s different getting used to the style and high school in general.

What personal goals are you hoping to accomplish in the coming years in high school?

I want to keep scoring as many goals as I can. We want to see how many we can score as a team in the season and we want to stay undefeated.

What’s the top song on your iTunes playlist right now?

“Energy” by Drake. It’s a really good pregame song. It always pumps me up.

Brian Graham is a freelance writer.

Tags: Freedom, Mars