Graham proves to be Jaspers’ total package

When Rory Graham was in high school, she had college cross country and track and field coaches from all over the country trying to recruit her. She could have gone to a prestigious school, one with bigger facilities like Northeastern University or even an Ivy League school like the University of Pennsylvania. But after meeting and spending time with Manhattan College cross country and track and field coach Kerri Gallagher, Graham knew she had to become a Jasper.

“She had these big dreams about us just kind of changing the momentum and changing the team attitude,” Graham said about her coach. “Starting something new was really cool to me.”

It might seem surprising that she would turn down some of the places that pursued her. Graham was offered an opportunity to run at UPenn and declined — but she had her reasons.

“I did not want to go to UPenn because I was really nervous about the pressure there, especially mental health wise,” Graham said.

The New York Times best-selling book “What Made Maddy Run,” had come out not long before Graham was recruited. The book is about a true story of Madison Holleran, a University of Pennsylvania Division I track athlete who took her own life after struggling with mental health issues. Graham’s parents read the book, but kept their opinion to themselves and encouraged their daughter to choose a school that was the right fit for her.

Looking back, Graham recalled finding out later that they secretly hoped she would choose Riverdale over Philadelphia.

“In their head, they were like, ‘Please pick Manhattan!’” Graham said.

Graham grew up just north of Albany, where she originally played soccer and basketball. She used track and field to stay in shape during the spring, but by sophomore year, she realized it was the sport for her. Graham says it was the camaraderie among the girls on the team who inspired her to do winter track and club soccer simultaneously during her sophomore year.

“It was just such a different atmosphere … with other field sports or even tennis, you’re fighting for that starting spot or number one singles and stuff like that,” Graham said. “But with track, it’s more like you’re working with your teammates instead of against them … it was just more of a cohesive and fun environment.”

After a period of time where Graham’s parents, Dave and Michele, were driving their daughter from soccer practice directly to track practice, Graham suffered an overuse injury that forced her to choose just one sport per season.

“It was kind of fun,” Michele said of this hectic time in Graham’s athletic career. “It was fun to go and watch her because she was successful at both (soccer and track) … we just love to watch her do what she loves to do, and it really doesn’t get better than that, until she got hurt. Then it wasn’t so fun anymore.”

After joining the Jaspers, Graham would sustain another injury, this time a labrum tear which she had to get cortisone shots for over the years. Now, because of this injury requiring surgery, Graham will not be competing with the Jaspers for the rest of the season, meaning her collegiate cross country career has ended.

“I am still able to travel with the team for their MAAC championships to support them so it’s not a totally sad ending,” Graham said in a follow up interview after announcing her retirement.

Because of this injury, there have been times in which she couldn’t compete or even participate in the same training as the rest of the team. Despite this, Graham was able to compete in races such as the 2021 6K MAAC Championships, and finish with a time of 24:28.98 as well as the 2021 Winter Cross Country invitational, where she finished in 21:00.1.

Graham was noticed by teammate Domenick Boccia for maintaining leadership qualities during times when the collective attitude was at its worst — like in January 2022, when the majority of the team tested positive for COVID-19 and could not train. During a team meeting, Graham took action and influenced her teammates to keep their heads high. When Graham was selected to join Manhattan College’s Pen and Sword honor society, Boccia — a member of the previous class — discussed her influence on the team at the induction ceremony.

“You taught us a valuable lesson on what it means to lead and how to do so through serving others,” Boccia said about her willingness to revitalize their attitudes. “Your efforts do not go unnoticed; first to practice and last to leave, constant communication with our coach and your teammates will forever be remembered.”

In addition to being a runner, Graham enjoys writing, which is why she chose to major in English and political science in college. During this time, she served as editor-in-chief of Logos, an academic liberal arts journal, and helped high schoolers write their college essays.

Graham is determined to become a volunteer assistant coach for her high school track and field team and eventually, a high school English teacher. After she graduates in December, she will be attending Clarkson University to pursue her master’s in education.

Adam Koehler, who advised Graham in her role as editor-in-chief, says the idea of Graham teaching English to the next generation makes him feel “relieved for the future.”

“She’s going to be an advocate for students who don’t necessarily know that they have advocates in their lives,” Koehler said. “I think that is something a lot of young people need is an adult who is going to take them seriously, and with the kindness and with the intelligence that Rory brings to the table.”

Gallagher has seen this kindness play out in Graham’s athletic career since her early days on the team, noting her ability to detect when she should help a teammate hands on or simply lead by example. She believes that all of this comes from a place of humility, which helped her get through her injury.

“She has had to deal with significant injuries throughout her career which made her progression look a lot different than many athletes,” Gallagher said. “Her commitment to growth and development in all areas, however, is what allowed her to come out of two years of significant injury and establish herself as a key contributing member of both cross country and track and field scoring teams.”