Classroom Champions: La Vega’s Angie Montelongo
WACO, Texas (KWTX) - La Vega senior Angie Montelongo is a natural born soccer player, but at La Vega, all the soccer players are encouraged to run cross country.
“I didn’t really want to run, I just did it because they needed people,” said Montelongo.
Before high school, Montelongo had never run competitively. Her soccer coach, Eric Ramirez, saw the potential in her as a runner and pushed her to her limit.
“She was a talented runner and she is a great soccer player,” said Ramirez, “but we wanted to make sure she used both of those talents.”
It was only a matter of time for Montelongo before she became a cross country star.
“Once we figured out that she was gonna be our top runner and that she could compete in the top ten at every meet, it was just a matter of part of the mental game for her,” said Ramirez. “When she gets out there, you can kind of see on her face where she’s at. She’s engaged in what she’s doing.”
In soccer, the La Vega forward was named District 23-4A Offensive Player of the Year as a junior. Though just last week, Montelongo competed at the state cross country meet, finishing 37th out of 152 runners. She also set a school record for the 2 mile run, clocking in at 12 minutes and 15 seconds.
“I never expected it,” said Montelongo. “Like for every meet, I surprisingly got a medal, or like top five, except for one meet. I just thought they were easier meets, but I surprised myself by being able to push myself.”
“You could argue that if you had 11 Angie’s, anybody could coach her and you’d be good,” said Ramirez. “The thing about it is her desire and her willingness and her effort to compete make her who she is.”
In the classroom, Angie is ranked 30th in her senior class with a 3.8 GPA. She has already earned her CNA license, as she plans on studying nursing in college while hoping to play soccer.
“I thought about nursing and dentistry because they just help people if they’re sick or something, and that’s just something that I want to do, help people,” said Montelongo. “I push myself more than I expected to push myself. And everything seems fun. It’s gonna be over with next year, so why not try your hardest now.”
Congratulations to Angie Montelongo, you’re this week’s Texas Best Chevy Dealers Classroom Champion.
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