Distance runner is shining in 2015 Indoor Season
Dustan Copeland | Sports Writer | @dustycopey
Junior Jason Lynch has been a standout athlete at UVU for some time now. The Sandy native was named All WAC Second Team last year placing fifth in the 5000 meter run and eighth in the 3000 meter. In the Mountain States Games, he placed second in both categories. He won the UNLV Classic in the 3000 meter. Last year seemed to be a banner year for Lynch.
He wasn’t satisfied. Lynch wants more and has the drive and work ethic to get it. He is an athlete to look watch because he is the type who will never stop setting higher and higher goals. Not only that he knows what it takes to reach them and won’t stop until he does.
This year, he’s won WAC player of the week and broken school records in the 5000 meter with a time of 14:45:16. With the WAC Indoor Track & Field Championships coming up, Lynch is expected to be one of many of UVU standouts to shine. He expects none less from himself and his team.
“I think that individually and as a team, we have already had a very successful team. I think that we will be able to carry this over into the championships. I also think that we have a very serious chance at being the conference champions. I believe that we are ready to compete.”
They indeed do look ready to compete. Lynch credits hard work and doing “the little things” for helping him improve and prepare for the biggest meets this season. “A few aspects that contributed to my improvement were that I’ve tried to focus on the smaller things like sleeping enough, eating right, and doing plenty of core,” Lynch said Also, I feel like consistency of working hard is paying off.”
These are things that Lynch has learned throughout his life. He graduated from Hillcrest High with a 3.9 GPA and has made the conference All-Academic team. This is very impressive, given the busy schedules of a student athlete even back in high school. Most don’t make it past high school or club sport because they don’t have what it takes to make the grades as well as the times on the track. “Where I’m from has prepared me for collegiate athletics because of the way I was raised. My parents taught me the importance of hard work, dedication, and perseverance.”
With a great academic record and work ethic, Jason caught the attention of many schools, including Yale. Yet, he personally felt that UVU was the best fit for him.
“One of the main reasons why I came to UVU was that I really liked the school. The program seemed similar to my high school which was comforting due to the nature of its familiarity. I also felt like I could help the program develop. I also like the atmosphere and the coaches.”
Athletes like Lynch have indeed helped develop the program. With the meet coming up in a few days, he is expected to do quite well and continue to represent our school.
