The glue to team success is unity. Klamath Union High School senior captain Isabela Coffman was the glue for her cross country team this year and led her team to school history as she helped the girls' cross country team to its third Skyline Conference District Championship in a row.
Coffman was the top female long-distance runner in the Klamath Basin as she won the district title at Steen Sports Park in a 5,000-meter run with a time of 20:53.20 — but it did not come easy.
A Rigorous Schedule
Coffman has a rigorous schedule to maintain as:
- School ASB President
- A percussionist in three different bands at KU
- A member of National Honor Society
- A Klamath County Special Olympics volunteer coach
- Competing in swimming and track and field
- And participating in bowling after cross country practice
Her hands would be even more tied as she balanced all of it — and still found time to lead.
A Statewide Honor
Adding to her stripes, Coffman recently received the Army National Guard Most Valuable Teammate award by the Oregon Schools Activities Association. She is the first winner of the award at Klamath Union in recent memory. The recognition may also turn into a scholarship.
"Supporting my teammates is a big thing for me. I love running and it is the people in the sport and my teammates that makes the year for me."
— Isabela Coffman
A Family Legacy
The KU senior has quite the legacy to follow, coming from a family with loads of running shoes in their closet. Longtime distance running connections through her family laid the groundwork, but Coffman built her own chapter — captain, district champion, statewide recognition — entirely on her own terms.
For the KU girls' cross country team, the third consecutive district title is a chapter of school history. For Coffman, it's also a personal best — and the kind of senior season that will be talked about at the Klamath Union cross country program for years.