A runner holding a top five position on almost any cross country squad is usually a veteran competitor coming out of high school. At larger, Big Ten, Div. I colleges and universities, many athletes have multiple state titles and honors to their names. Typical. Usual. These words do not describe Penn State women's cross country senior and co-captain Maureen Thomas or the way she came to be on the women's team.

She began her running career at Liberty High School in Bethlehem, Penn. as a sophomore.

Thomas pursued running without seriousness and eventually joined the basketball team. When her high school days came to an end so did any aspirations of running cross country. Or so she thought.

Thomas came to Happy Valley her freshman year and began looking for something to fill her leisure time.

As she was searching, Thomas took up running once again. She ran around campus and on backwoods trails, just for fun though.

"I just started to enjoy it more than ever before," Thomas said.

Soon after, she looked into joining the cross country team. However, her inquiry was met with hesitation from Penn State women's cross country coach Beth Alford-Sullivan, who had just brought in a large recruiting class that year. With Thomas' limited high school record, she was turned down several times.

"It was kind of like when your mom tells you 'no,'" Thomas said. "You just have to find another way to get what you want."

And she did. Her high school coach made a phone call to Alford-Sullivan, assuring her that Maureen would be a good asset to the team. So Thomas got a chance and was added to the 2001 season roster. From the moment she began training during that summer, Thomas knew she found her spot. She feels that her running has only gotten better and better with the coming of each season, and Alford-Sullivan knows she made the right choice.

"She is a great example of what hard work can get you," Alford-Sullivan said. "She is a great leader and all around great person."

Thomas' teammates share the same sentiments.

"She is very dedicated," senior co-captain Katy Hillard said. "But she doesn't let it consume her."

Thomas upholds her standard of hard work on and off the field. She is serious about her major, marketing, and her name can be found consistently on the dean's list. She is also almost ready to bow out of the cross country team but not without a last great race this weekend and maybe even a chance to go to NCAA Regionals. She will be key in assisting the Nittany Lions.

All this importance surrounds a runner who does not have any state titles, had to be persistent to get her name added to the roster, and now is one of the top runners on the team, a captain, and a team leader.

"She's a great leader," Alford-Sullivan said. "I knew I made the right choice adding her to the roster."