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Feature: Melissa Foon
Links associated with this release: By: Price Atkinson Happiness breeds success. Just ask Melissa Foon. Foon, a member of the Navy women's cross country and track and field teams, is off and running to a great start this fall. The senior from Lexington, Ky., and Henry Clay High School has picked up victories in two of the four races in which she has run and is building on the success she had as a junior last season. "I think just being happy is what does it," Foon said. "As long as I am happy about my academics, with what I am doing with my life and being with my team. I think that is what has really been the key to success." Navy head women's cross country coach Karen Boyle said Foon's upbeat style is evident. "She brings her sense of humor to the team," Boyle said. "Whether she has a good race or a bad race, she can always put an enjoyable spin on things and that keeps everybody in a lighthearted manner." Most recently, Foon won the 6,000-meter 15th-Annual Penn State Open in University Park, Pa., winning in a time of 21:23.37 on Oct. 7. She won the Navy Fall Classic on Sept. 9 with a time of 20:03.80. Foon opened the season with a third-place finish at the Mountaineer Open in Boone, N.C. In 1999, Foon, who also runs track for Navy in the indoor and outdoor seasons, posted the top-two times on the team as a junior. She was one of the top 34 runners in the country last season during indoor track in the 3,000 meters. Foon broke the Navy mark in the outdoor 5,000 meters at the Heptagonals/Ivy League Championship last year with a time of 17:03. However, 1998 was a little tougher as Foon became acclimated with the Academy. "Melissa had some problems with balancing everything out in her freshman and sophomore seasons, more in her sophomore year," Boyle said. "When she came in as a freshman, she contributed by being in the top seven on the team. In her sophomore year, she kind of got sidetracked and was not as focused which showed in her performances." At the beginning of her junior season on the cross country team, something clicked and Foon shed those distractions and blossomed, becoming the top runner on the squad. From there, she began to pick up steam. "I just think it was an attitude change," Foon said of her improvement. "I started believing in myself." For Foon, one of her most memorable moments came as a contributor last season. "The thing that I am most proud of is last year during indoor track when we beat Army," she said. "I got to actually be a part of it and say, 'I helped beat Army.' That was such a good feeling because I had never gotten an N-Star before." One thing Foon knows is what she'll be doing after graduating from the Academy in May. "I am going into surface warfare," Foon said. "I chose it because I am really excited to make an impact on the Naval fleet." Foon does not plan to stop there. Both her parents are doctors and she plans on following in their footsteps, no matter how old she is. "After I get out of the Navy, I want to be a doctor," Foon said. "That is my dream. The Navy is good because it will give me some years to mature, build character and have a worldly experience. Then I can go be a doctor because it is never too late to go to medical school. My father works with fellows who are 50 that just went back to school to become doctors." Foon's family recently moved from Lexington to Cincinnati, Ohio, where her father is the Director of the Barrett Cancer Center. Her mother specializes in head trauma and works with patients who have spinal cord injuries. For now, Foon is happy and enjoying running, but she still has a goal to meet before her season is over. "We want to go to NCAAs in Ames, Iowa," Foon said. "That is my personal goal and team goal." In order to qualify, the team must finish in the top two at the regional championship against teams such as Penn State, West Virginia, Bucknell, Georgetown and Villanova. Individually, runners have to be one of the top-four finishers outside of runners from the top-two teams. "It all comes down to how you run on the day of the regional championship," Boyle said. "She's not intimidated by anybody, so hopefully she'll be on that day. One thing is for sure, she is definitely prepared for it." Then Foon can keep on running and enjoying life.
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