Holding her breath, trying not to worry about the girl behind her, sweat dripping down her face. Thinking about teammates behind her, she’s determined to win the race. The finish line is now two feet away. She crosses it, not knowing what she just accomplished.

Freshman Jazmin Neri broke the school record for the girls’ 5k, with a time of 18:13 on Sept. 25. The previous record holder was Emily Cole, who ran a 19:01 in 2020.

“It felt really good to beat the record,” Neri said. “I believe that me beating the record was all God and his plan, and I couldn’t have done it without him.”

Neri ran every day over the summer, typically running with her older brothers, Jose and Pablo. She said summer running has helped her get closer to accomplishing her goals.

“I started running in sixth-grade summer, going into seventh grade, and I started to really take this seriously,” Neri said. “When my brother would go out, I would go and train with him, and he really helped me during the summer to keep me on track with cross country.”

Jazmin’s cousin, senior Azucena Neri, said that Jazmin runs every single day without fail.

“I can see how much she trains and how bad she wants to get better,” Azucena Neri said. “I’m really proud of how she’s handling this for her freshman year, and I think she’ll be great in the future.”

Jazmin started running when she was 12 years old, and she said her brothers got her into running.

“I started going to practices with one of my brothers and trained with him every day,” Jazmin said. “They taught me to stay with them and never look at the person coming behind or beside you.”

Jazmin said that she wanted to prove her work ethic and how much work she has put in to everyone who watches her race.

“I’ve known Jazmin since she was little because I coached her brothers, and she is an absolute sweet girl to coach and be around,” head cross country coach Kelsie Jones said. “I’m super excited to see what the future holds and how much she can grow.”