Juggling academics and athletics is something current Englewood High School students know well. This is not a new issue for the student body; it has been the case since the school opened in 1913. However, some student-athletes throughout the school’s history have made it look easy. 1997 graduate Elena Villarreal Strawbridge was one of the best.
Running to and from class and around the track was where Strawbridge excelled. She ran cross country all four years of high school. That took up all of her time in the fall. But when spring came around, she was ready to run again, spending three years on the track and field team.
She cherishes her memories from EHS, “Englewood was a small family-oriented town and it still feels like that today in many ways. I had many of the same friends I initially met in elementary school at Charles Hay and then we continued into middle school at Flood and then onto high school at Englewood.”
Her teachers made an impression on her and the students around her, “The teachers at Englewood really cared about the students and were friends with one another. I enjoyed seeing them laughing, joking around, and hanging out outside of school. I also felt like we had great community support with the Englewood Herald Newspaper covering our school events and good crowds for our events,” Strawbridge said.
Her favorite memories outside of the classroom were steeped in a tradition still taking place today, “I enjoyed our home cross-country meet, The Windjammer because it was a good spectator course and showed off our beautiful campus. I was always proud of our school grounds because of how expansive they were, how well-kept they were, and that we hosted many state tournaments in soccer and baseball.”
Band concerts and theater productions also rank high in her memories: “Our top-notch band concerts, led by Mr. Brickley, and theatre productions, produced by Mr. Ambron, who was also my cross-country coach. I’ll also never forget a school talent show where Mr. Ambron sang and strummed Billy Joel’s “Piano Man” on the guitar, complete with the harmonica accompaniment. He then teamed up with another teacher, Mr. Getchel, to do a “Blues Brothers” rendition. Our teachers were so talented.”
She came to love running because it was a family sport, “My dad was a long-distance runner in high school and college. He was the State Champion in the 2-mile for North High School and I always wanted to follow in his footsteps.”
Her love of music grew with the help of a great teacher, “I started with music lessons at the Grenoble Studio of Musical Arts which is still operating in Englewood. One of the founders, Peggy McCreary, played the oboe and I thought that sounded like a fun instrument to try. She gave me lessons in 6th grade and I played in the Flood Middle School band and continued on for four years at Englewood.”
In 1997, she got state-wide accolades for her expertise on the track being named the Denver Post Female Student-Athlete of the Year, “It was a huge surprise and an incredible honor! I didn’t get to compete in track my senior year and defend my state titles because of an injury. Thus, I didn’t think I had a chance at winning. When they said my name, I couldn’t hold back the tears as I went up to accept it. The award really felt like a celebration of my four years of hard work dedicated to running. When you are a runner, you only take off a few weeks a year. You are always running to keep in shape and protect your edge. I am a grateful recipient of the award.”
She is proud of her contributions to the Englewood High School community: “When I look back, I am proud of the Englewood name that I got to carry to every track meet I ran. It felt good to hear people yelling,’ Go Englewood!’ when I ran by. At that time, newspapers covered high school sports much more than they do now. I got to represent Englewood in many articles that included photos of me in my Englewood jersey.”
Strawbridge also won recognition for her skills in band and orchestra, “In music, I was selected for All-State Band and All-State Orchestra and represented Englewood in those circles as well. I think these accomplishments showed that Englewood was producing students who could achieve at a high level of excellence and hold their own with other such students in the State,” Strawbridge said.
Looking back at her years in Englewood, Strawbridge is proud to have grown up in this community, “Englewood is a hardworking, down-to-earth community. Neighbors talk to each other, people love living here. I am proud that I had the opportunity to grow up in Englewood and enjoy all my years of schooling here culminating in my time as a Pirate. I am happy to see that the tradition of Englewood Pirate Pride continues.”
Elena Villareal Strawbridge Stats:
Englewood High School
Cross Country, 4 years, 1994-1997
10th grade year, 3rd at State
11th grade year, 4th at State
12th grade year, 5th at State
Track and Field, 3 years, 1995-1997
10th grade year, 3rd at State in the 800, 3rd at State in the 1600
11th grade year, 1st at State in the 1600, 1st at State in the 3200
12 grade year, Denver Post Student-Athlete of the Year
Stanford University
Scholarship athlete in Cross Country, Indoor Track, and Outdoor Track, 4 years, 1997-2001
Pac-10 All-Academic Cross Country and Track Selection all four years
Junior year, Mountain Pacific Conference Champion for Indoor Track in the 3000m
Senior year, captain of the cross country team, named All-Conference for Pac-10, All-Regional for Western-Region, helped lead the team to a 3rd place finish at the NCAA I Cross Country National meet
Senior year 12th at NCAA I Indoor Track National meet in the 3000m
