When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down schools in the spring of 2020, it also cancelled the AHSAA’s spring sports season.

No baseball games, softball games, track meets, soccer, golf or tennis matches. Teams were prohibited from gathering for practice or group training sessions, leaving many athletes with no direction.

But not Glencoe’s Katie Giles.

For her, the pandemic supercharged her running career.

“That was the highlight of my day every day,” she said. “I didn’t have anything else to do. I started running every day and started getting a lot faster. That just motivated me to keep going. That’s really when I fell in love with running. I started increasing what I had been doing in the past and saw myself improving. I started just having a lot of fun with it.”

After Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey closed schools in the spring of 2020, there were no guarantees the fall season would begin. That didn’t stop Katie, who kept logging miles and refining her training regimen – what she called “the science of running” – in preparation for the 2020 cross country season.

It all paid off. The schools re-opened later that summer and the AHSAA’s sports schedule returned basically to normal. Giles won the AHSAA Class 3A individual cross country title in fall of 2020, having logged approximately 700 training miles from March 2020 when the pandemic began to the state meet in early November.

Those who know Katie aren’t surprised at how she responded to the initial uncertainty caused by the pandemic. Her devotion to running and excellence showcased her driven, determined personality.

“I think of the word grit,” said Sherry Firestone, one of Giles’ teachers at Glencoe. “There’s something inherent in certain people, and Katie has that. People are born with it. You can’t teach it. The kid has that quality that doesn’t come along often.”

Katie also showcases her drive in the classroom. She carries a 4.46 GPA and scored a perfect 36 on the ACT. Although an official determination hasn’t been made, she’s on track to be Glencoe’s valedictorian or salutatorian while enrolled in dual-enrollment and Advanced Placement classes. She is also a National Merit Finalist.

She signed to run cross country and track at the University of South Alabama, where she plans to study biomedical sciences with the goal of attending medical school. She hopes to eventually specialize in orthopedics or sports medicine.

The blend of academic and athletic success explains why Katie received the 2023 Larry D. Striplin Jr., Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award as the overall scholar-athlete of the year at Monday night’s annual Bryant-Jordan Banquet in Birmingham. Hatton’s Jazzmine Mason was selected the 2023 Ken and Betty Joy Blankenship Student Achievement Athlete of the Year Award recipient. That award honors senior student-athletes who have overcome personal adversity to excel.

“Katie is one of the most driven individuals I have ever known,” said her mom, Donna Giles, a teacher at Etowah High School. “For her teachers and such, I hope they don’t think we constantly push her, push her, push her, because she doesn’t require pushing. It’s all motivation from within. She just strives for excellence in everything she puts her hands on. She wants to do her very best in academics and athletics.”

Glencoe girls’ track coach Adrian Payne shared a story to illustrate Katie’s drive. On the day before the 2023 indoor track meet, Katie planned a three-mile training run as her final race prep. Knowing Katie prefers to run outdoors, Payne worried about her senior running in a driving rainstorm with temperatures in the mid-40s. Katie, though, wouldn’t be deterred.

“She was like, ‘I don’t care. I have got my hat and rain jacket and I’m good to go,’” Payne said. “She literally ran her three miles in freezing temperatures and pouring down rain. And that was by herself. Nobody else. When she has a task that she has to complete, she does whatever it takes to get it completed.

“She’s a very hard worker,” Payne continued. “That is in the classroom and sports wise. She works harder than any athlete I’ve ever had. One of the things I like to say is, you will not outwork Katie Giles.”

Katie showcased her determination in other ways throughout her high school career. She battled a series of injuries, including a nagging hip injury during her junior season that slowed her progress. Even when she couldn’t clock elite times, she paced younger teammates in an effort to help them log personal bests.

She also works a part-time job as a local soccer official, attended Girls State, served as president of the school’s Junior Civitan Club and volunteered her time in numerous community service projects. She also played soccer and basketball before giving up both to focus on her running career.

“She’s just the total package, you know what I mean?” Glencoe Principal Wendy Tinker said. “She’s just the real deal. We are proud of her at Glencoe. We’re proud to be part of her high school journey, and we hope she takes a little piece with her wherever she goes. “She’s one of the most determined kids I’ve ever met. If she can’t do it the first time, she’s going to work and work and work until it’s perfect,” Tinker added. “You hate to say a perfect kid, but she’s as close to perfect as I’ve ever seen.”

2023 Bryant-Jordan Winners

Ken and Betty Joy Blankenship Student Achievement Winner

OVERALL: Jazzmine Mason, Hatton High School

CLASS WINNERS

1A – Nadia Moore, Loachapoka High School

2A – Jazzmine Mason, Hatton High School

3A – Blake Cleveland, Plainview High School

4A – Caleb Ray, T.R. Miller High School

5A – Jayden Spearman, Charles Henderson High School

6A – Troy Young, Athens High School

7A – Robert Suter, Enterprise High School

Larry Striplin Jr. Blankenship Scholar-Athlete Winners

OVERALL: Katie Giles, Glencoe High School

CLASS WINNERS

1A – Reece Hall, Kinston High School

2A – Carson Hall, Ranburne High School

3A – Katie Giles, Glencoe High School

4A – Brooklyn Ehlers, Corner High School

5A – Annie Wingate, Eufaula High School

6A – Jack Heap, Cullman High School

7A – Maxwell Hardin, Auburn High School