Peabody High junior Catarina Rocha has been making history since the first time she put her feet to the pavement of a high school track.
Yesterday, Rocha added another historic accolade to her running resume as she was named the 2011-12 Gatorade Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year for Massachusetts.
The Massachusetts Division 1 all-state champion and an All-American, Rocha is the first girl from Peabody to earn Gatorade accolades and is the third student-athlete from the Tanner City, joining baseball players Jeff Allison (2003) and Ryan Moorer (2004).
"It's a pretty cool accomplishment. You don't get the best athlete in the Massachusetts in a sport that often," Peabody athletic director Phil Sheridan said last night. "I'm very excited for Catarina because she's working very hard and is a great kid."
Rocha finished seventh at Foot Locker Cross Country Nationals in 17:38 in San Diego last month, the best finish by a girl from the Bay State in 10 years. She won the Division 1 All-State meet in 18:12, won her second straight Division 1 Eastern Mass. title in 18:06, took the Northeastern Conference crown in 17:52 and set a new Peabody course record of 16:11.
Gatorade has been honoring the top athlete in each state in a variety of sports since 1985 and has been naming cross country honorees since 2007. The award also recognizes academic achievement and exemplary character.
Rocha, ranked No. 33 in Peabody's junior class, is also a student council member and a peer tutor at PVMHS.
"She's a talented young lady, but she's smart both in the classroom and in track and that's a dangerous combination," said Sheridan. "She knows how to arrange a race and set someone up. I've never seen her lose to the same person twice, because she figures out what she needs to do next time."
Already a state champion in the outdoor 2-mile, Rocha is working on her indoor track resume this winter and figures to be a factor in all three track seasons for the rest of her high school career. She credits her coach and dad, Joe, and her mom Gina, who were both Hall of Fame runners in high school, for their always steady guidance and unconditional support.
"Talent only takes you so far," said Sheridan. "She has a big heart and a high level of intelligence."
