Senior Tabor Scholl
Photo by: Ken Moreland
Scholl Striving For Excellence In Final Cross Country Season
October 31, 2019 | Cross Country
BOULDER - It's hard to imagine University of Colorado senior Tabor Scholl doing anything other than running, but when she was younger, it was her dream to be a dancer.
"I was not interested in running at all," she said. "I wanted to be a dancer on Broadway."
But after a few years of dance camp, Scholl decided dancing was not for her.
Running was a natural transition for her and she had experience, albeit not competitively.
"We had a mile-long, up-hill, dirt driveway that led up to our house," she explained. "My parents would stop at the bottom of the driveway to let us out and told us to get out. They would say, 'We value physical activity. You need to get outside; you've been sitting all day."
So Scholl and her younger brother, Tyler, would get out of the car after some complaining and would run home. The more they ran it, the better they both felt, which made them more competitive and soon it was a competition to get home first.
Soon after Scholl decided she wanted to run, her mother, Stephanie, put her on the middle school cross country team, which was a great opening experience for her.
"Everything was fun," Scholl said. "It was made to be short and inclusive and it was great to be around other kids who liked to run."
As she started to compete against others, the Kremmling, Colo. native, continued to get better. Unfortunately, her high school, West Grand, did not have a cross country team. So to compete in the longer distances, she had to race for a neighboring high school, Middle Park.
When cross country season was over, she went back to West Grand to compete in track where she was the only long-distance runner on a team that mostly ran 400 and below. Not having anyone on the team to train with provided a different situation for Scholl.
"I usually trained with my brother or alone and was just associated with the school so I could race at meets," she said.
While at Middle Park, she became a very decorated cross country runner amongst the smaller schools in Colorado, winning the Colorado High School Athletic Association's 3A title as a freshman. She was the runner-up the following year and as a senior, won the 2A championship.
When it was time to start looking at colleges, she was mostly looking at programs out west. She did not initially contact Colorado, but after she started talking to other schools, she realized she should contact CU. Thankfully she did because it was a match.
"I reached out to Mark [Wetmore] and Heather [Burroughs] and I really meshed with their philosophy and their personalities. Billy [Nelson] was really helpful too," she said. "I took a visit here, which was my second after I visited Utah, and I fell in love with it. I knew after my visit that this was the place for me."
Coming from a smaller school could have been seen as a disadvantage, but Wetmore knew she had the talent to be successful.
"Tabor was an unheralded high school runner. More because of the school size she competed in, the smallest in the state of Colorado, than because of talent," Wetmore said. "We knew she was talented right away. An astute observer of Colorado high school running would have known she was talented. She did come in under the radar as they say."
Scholl's freshman season saw her earn a spot on the varsity roster. She earned all-region honors with a 10th-place finish at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships and placed 42nd at nationals, just two spots from an All-America honor.
But her sophomore season in 2017 was not the follow-up season she was hoping for. After racing three times, she was unable to compete in the final two races of the season. "I kind of got into a vicious injury cycle," she explained.
While some athletes would get down about injury and not being able to compete with the team, Scholl looked back at the year as a learning experience.
"It helped me decide what I really wanted to do," she said. "It reinvigorated me. By getting injured and having running taken away, I was so appreciative of being able to run and not run in pain or fear of pain."
Reinvigorated she was. Her 2018 season was outstanding. She was ninth at Pac-12s to earn all-conference second-team honors and was eighth at regionals to once again record all-region status. Scholl capped off the campaign with an impressive 15th-place finish to earn All-America honors and help the Buffaloes to the NCAA team title; their first since 2004.
"It was just really special that we all had a best day on that day," she said about winning the NCAA title. "I think it was because we embraced the challenge of what that day encompassed."
Her senior season is off to a great start. She has been the No. 2 harrier for CU in both varsity meets, finishing 12th at the Joe Piane Invitational and 10th at the NCAA Pre-National Invitational. Her struggles and triumphs have paid off and all signs point to her having a great final season for the Buffs.
"She is a very hard worker," Wetmore said. "She had a couple interruptions with injuries but seems to have hardened up and has broken through that. She has had very solid training for the last year, year and a half and has made nice progress."
Throughout her career, she says she has been motivated by excellence and she wants to leave her mark at Colorado.
"I think we get into a pattern of putting in your time and instead I've decided that I'm going to try to be excellent with everything I do, especially with this being my last year," Scholl said. "I do really well under pressure; I kind of like that this is my last year and I can say, this is the last time I am running Pac-12s."
Scholl and the rest of the Buffaloes will race at the Pac-12 Championships Friday, November 1, in Monmouth, Ore. One can imagine she will be striving for excellence in her last conference meet. And there is no doubt she will leave her mark at CU.
"I was not interested in running at all," she said. "I wanted to be a dancer on Broadway."
But after a few years of dance camp, Scholl decided dancing was not for her.
Running was a natural transition for her and she had experience, albeit not competitively.
"We had a mile-long, up-hill, dirt driveway that led up to our house," she explained. "My parents would stop at the bottom of the driveway to let us out and told us to get out. They would say, 'We value physical activity. You need to get outside; you've been sitting all day."
So Scholl and her younger brother, Tyler, would get out of the car after some complaining and would run home. The more they ran it, the better they both felt, which made them more competitive and soon it was a competition to get home first.
Soon after Scholl decided she wanted to run, her mother, Stephanie, put her on the middle school cross country team, which was a great opening experience for her.
"Everything was fun," Scholl said. "It was made to be short and inclusive and it was great to be around other kids who liked to run."
As she started to compete against others, the Kremmling, Colo. native, continued to get better. Unfortunately, her high school, West Grand, did not have a cross country team. So to compete in the longer distances, she had to race for a neighboring high school, Middle Park.
When cross country season was over, she went back to West Grand to compete in track where she was the only long-distance runner on a team that mostly ran 400 and below. Not having anyone on the team to train with provided a different situation for Scholl.
"I usually trained with my brother or alone and was just associated with the school so I could race at meets," she said.
While at Middle Park, she became a very decorated cross country runner amongst the smaller schools in Colorado, winning the Colorado High School Athletic Association's 3A title as a freshman. She was the runner-up the following year and as a senior, won the 2A championship.
When it was time to start looking at colleges, she was mostly looking at programs out west. She did not initially contact Colorado, but after she started talking to other schools, she realized she should contact CU. Thankfully she did because it was a match.
"I reached out to Mark [Wetmore] and Heather [Burroughs] and I really meshed with their philosophy and their personalities. Billy [Nelson] was really helpful too," she said. "I took a visit here, which was my second after I visited Utah, and I fell in love with it. I knew after my visit that this was the place for me."
Coming from a smaller school could have been seen as a disadvantage, but Wetmore knew she had the talent to be successful.
"Tabor was an unheralded high school runner. More because of the school size she competed in, the smallest in the state of Colorado, than because of talent," Wetmore said. "We knew she was talented right away. An astute observer of Colorado high school running would have known she was talented. She did come in under the radar as they say."
Scholl's freshman season saw her earn a spot on the varsity roster. She earned all-region honors with a 10th-place finish at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships and placed 42nd at nationals, just two spots from an All-America honor.
But her sophomore season in 2017 was not the follow-up season she was hoping for. After racing three times, she was unable to compete in the final two races of the season. "I kind of got into a vicious injury cycle," she explained.
While some athletes would get down about injury and not being able to compete with the team, Scholl looked back at the year as a learning experience.
"It helped me decide what I really wanted to do," she said. "It reinvigorated me. By getting injured and having running taken away, I was so appreciative of being able to run and not run in pain or fear of pain."
Reinvigorated she was. Her 2018 season was outstanding. She was ninth at Pac-12s to earn all-conference second-team honors and was eighth at regionals to once again record all-region status. Scholl capped off the campaign with an impressive 15th-place finish to earn All-America honors and help the Buffaloes to the NCAA team title; their first since 2004.
"It was just really special that we all had a best day on that day," she said about winning the NCAA title. "I think it was because we embraced the challenge of what that day encompassed."
Her senior season is off to a great start. She has been the No. 2 harrier for CU in both varsity meets, finishing 12th at the Joe Piane Invitational and 10th at the NCAA Pre-National Invitational. Her struggles and triumphs have paid off and all signs point to her having a great final season for the Buffs.
"She is a very hard worker," Wetmore said. "She had a couple interruptions with injuries but seems to have hardened up and has broken through that. She has had very solid training for the last year, year and a half and has made nice progress."
Throughout her career, she says she has been motivated by excellence and she wants to leave her mark at Colorado.
"I think we get into a pattern of putting in your time and instead I've decided that I'm going to try to be excellent with everything I do, especially with this being my last year," Scholl said. "I do really well under pressure; I kind of like that this is my last year and I can say, this is the last time I am running Pac-12s."
Scholl and the rest of the Buffaloes will race at the Pac-12 Championships Friday, November 1, in Monmouth, Ore. One can imagine she will be striving for excellence in her last conference meet. And there is no doubt she will leave her mark at CU.