Sophomore Deirdre Milligan's ninth grade soccer coach might want to consider taking a job in the scouting business.
After Milligan joined the soccer team in the fall of her freshman year, the coach was apparently impressed by her speed. While Milligan wasn't exactly a bad soccer player, the coach suggested that she try her luck at running competitively.
The advice proved valuable.
Today Milligan is a three-sport athlete at Dartmouth, competing on the cross country team as well as both the indoor and the outdoor track teams.
During her sophomore fall, she earned First Team All-Ivy honors after finishing third at the Heptagonal Cross Country Championships in the Bronx. In the spring, Milligan was named an All-America and Second Team All-Ivy after her performance in the 10,000 meters at the NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. In the winter and spring, the psychology major was named a member of the Academic All-Ivy team.
Not bad for a converted soccer player.
Success often involves having a passion for whatever your endeavor may be, and Milligan's enthusiasm has clearly helped her achieve her goals as a runner.
"There's always been the stereotype of the lonely, long distance runner, and that's what I like best about running," she said. "It's something that you can do anywhere. You can do it by yourself, for as long or as short as you feel like."
"Running is an addictive thing," she said. " I've grown to love running; it's something that I have to do. At this point, it's as much of a habit for me as brushing your teeth in the morning. It's automatic."
Even during the most unpleasant circumstances, which are not too infrequent given Hanover's climate, Milligan is always game for a run.
"There are definitely times when running is not enjoyable, like at 7:30 in the morning during the winter. But when you get back, you feel really good and it's worth it," she explained.
Milligan became an All-American athlete for the first time in her career after she finished eighth at the NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships with a time of 34:23.70. This accomplishment appears even more remarkable considering she entered the event as the 19th seed.
Perhaps Milligan's confidence played a role in her best ever race: "I wasn't surprised, but a lot of others were. I qualified [for NCAAs] during my first race of the year, and I knew I could improve on that time ... I ran a perfect race. I didn't go out too fast. I paced myself and finished strong."
At NCAAs, Milligan achieved one of several goals that she had set for herself. "It was great," Milligan said. Becoming an All-America "had definitely been one of my goals. Last year I missed qualifying by 20 seconds."
Track Coach Ellen O'Neil described this year's Heps, an event which "exemplified [Milligan's] team spirit."
O'Neil said that Milligan could have placed first at Heps if she had wanted to, but O'Neil "asked her not too." O'Neil wanted her to help out teammates Kristin Manwaring '96 and Maribel Sanchez '96 so that the team could finish 1-2-3 and thus score better in team competition.
Deirdre had won the event as a freshman. O'Neil said that she could have easily done it again.
In the end, the runners finished 1-2-3 with Milligan in third. She "put away her individual goal and focused on the team aspect. That exemplifies her whole being," O'Neil said.
Despite the fact that Milligan has already established herself as one of the country's top collegiate runners, she doesn't plan on hanging up her spikes anytime soon.
Milligan said she will continue training after graduation, and hopes to compete in the Olympics as a marathoner someday. "I think that the Olympics is every athlete's ultimate goal," she said.
The scope of Deirdre Milligan's accomplishments is not limited to athletics; she also distinguished herself in academics after being named twice as an Academic All-Ivy.
She is currently pursuing a degree in psychology, although she said she is thinking about proposing a specialized major in neuroscience. She calls medical school a "possibility."
While some would think that training70 hours a week, traveling to meets and staying on top of studies is too much for one person to handle, Milligan takes it all in stride.
"I think running and academics complement each other," Milligan said. "In order to be a good runner, you have to work hard and discipline yourself. Success in running and studying are part of the same frame of mind. When I'm running well, I'm usually doing well in classes also. If I'm not running well, it's harder to stay focused on school."
Because Milligan is a three-sport athlete, she is not taking classes this summer.
Instead, she spends her days working in the Department of Neuroscience at Dartmouth-Hitchcock as part of the Presidential Scholars Program, waiting tables at the Hanover Inn and, as you might have guessed, running.
So if you're dining at the Inn this summer and happen to have Deirdre Milligan as your waitress, don't be surprised when your food gets there in a hurry.
