DETROIT (9/15/2020) -- Senior cross country and track and field standout
Rebecca Measel (Almont, Mich. / Almont) has improved her times in every event since she arrived on campus and even took on a new challenge when she decided to run cross country after her freshman season.
Measel came to Detroit Mercy to be a part of the great nursing program and a chance to prove herself as a Division I athlete. In her four years, she has defined the term student-athlete as she has made multiple appearances on the Detroit Mercy Athletic Director's and the Horizon League's academic honor roll.
In competition, she was selected the Kevin Donner Team MVP after the 2019 season after leading the Titan pack in three of the six races on the year and posted career bests in the 5k and 6k. She also earned the Coach's Award for indoor track and field after scoring at the Horizon League Championships with the distance medley relay and 4x400 and also posted a PR of 5:16.46 in the mile for 10th.
With the absence of the fall sports season in the Horizon League, DetroitTitans.com caught up with Measel:
Why did you choose to come to Detroit Mercy?
RM: One of the big things was sports, the opportunity to run track and then cross country. The academic programs are amazing and the nursing program is awesome. The class sizes are right for me. I came from a small high school where 500 people were in my high school so it was an easy transition for me and a great fit.
You came here and ran just track your freshman year, but then joined cross country, why was that?
RM: In high school, I was really a sprinter and part of a team that holds the 4x100-meter record. I went to the state championship for sprints and when I came here, I did sprints and hurdles. The summer going into sophomore year, I just started running more. I was bored and just wanted to stay in shape and every day, I just kept trying to run a faster two-mile time, then a three-mile time and just kept building and I decided that I liked this, I could be good at this. I emailed coach Murray about what he thought about me joining cross country and he was all for it. It was probably the best decision I ever made. I love it, it's so much fun.
What is it about cross country that you like?
RM: I just love running. It has opened so many new doors and a chance to compete in different events. I have done 5k's and 6k's so I have done almost everything with it and track, from the 100-meter hurdles all the way up to a 6k. Also the chance to go to different places. We have meets in New York, Kentucky, Indiana, just different places.
You work as a nurse assistant, how was that experience during this pandemic?
RM: I work at Beaumont Hospital. It wasn't much of a summer break because I was working so much with those directly affected with COVID.
Going through the summer working through the pandemic, does it make your choice to be a nurse stronger?
RM: It definitely solidified the fact that I want to help people. I was a float at my position so I would literally go everywhere in the hospital. There were times I was in the ICU with those patients and it made me say even more that I want to be here, I want to be with these patients and their families when they are in their worst times. I want to be able to help them get through this. If I can help people get through this, I can help people through anything. It was definitely a learning experience and all the nurses I worked with were great. We are all getting through it and the numbers are getting low so that's good. It was very scary and I was stressed out a lot.
What are your thoughts on if you can't compete as a senior due to the pandemic?
RM: I would be devastated really, but I understand with everything and even liability issues. One of the reasons I came here was because I loved running, ever since I was a kid, and I thought about it all summer and not being able to finish out my last years of competitively running would be sad and hard. I have thought about my options and I am taking an extra class to be able to apply to PA school in hopes of running again and keeping my eligibility. I just don't want to be done.
What kind of music do you listen to while practicing or getting ready for a meet?
RM: I always have to listen to Cardi B, she's my favorite. I like rap music, that's my favorite and usually pumps me up. Before every meet, I like to listen to "Buy Me A Drink" by T-Pain, I just love that song. Usually listening to that gets me in the mindset to say, okay let's go out and do this.
What is your favorite spot on campus?
RM: I love Calihan Hall, I love coming to the training room. I like going to the library and the areas, the hiding places in there to study. I love everywhere really.
What are your favorite shows on Netflix?
RM: I just re-watched Gossip Girls, that show is amazing. Breaking Bad or How to Get Away With Murder are good and Unsolved Mysteries is so weird and good. I watch literally everything.
If you weren't doing track and cross country, what sport do you think you would have played?
RM: Soccer. I played soccer really ever since I was four years old. I played it as a kid and all up to my freshman year of high school. I was on a travel team and I literally thought I was going to be a professional soccer player. When I got to high school, my mom said that I couldn't do everything, you can't play soccer, basketball, track, and always traveling for games on the weekends and that I had to pick something so I picked track, but it could have been soccer.
A track and field team has so many different kind of individuals, how is it being part of such a diverse team?
RM: Everyone has their own opinions and everyone comes from a different background. Everyone is just different and it's cool that we all found this one thing that we love and we are all here at Detroit Mercy, we all came to run and we all have this one common interest. It's just cool to see and be teammates with all these people from all over Michigan and the United States and different countries and we all come together. It gave me new perspectives on things because I come from such a small area, small town, and you meet all these different kinds of people from everywhere and it really gives you a new perspective on everything.
Now your a senior and your engaged to a former Titan runner, congratulations and did you ever think that was going to happen?
RM: He (Zach Arnold) was a senior when I was a freshman and we met and now we are engaged. It's fun to meet someone in college and be able to say I am going to be with you forever. It's weird to think that if I wasn't here, if I didn't come to Detroit Mercy, would I be getting married next year? It's weird to think of that but the date is all set for Oct. 9, 2021.
