Biography
By Jim Hague
One could definitely call Danielle Parker a reluctant cross country runner.
When the sophomore arrived at Rutgers-Newark from Passaic County Tech, Parker fancied herself as a middle distance (400 and 800-meter runs) in track and field. Cross country?
“I didn’t want to do cross country,” Parker said. “I couldn’t handle the distances. I texted (Coach Juan Edney) over the summer and asked if I could just do the workouts and not compete.”
There was only one problem with that scenario. Edney would have no part of it.
“She came to me with a unique situation and told me what she could do and couldn’t do,” Edney said. “She tried to talk me out of running cross country, but the kids today just don’t understand. I told her there was no way.”
So Parker admittedly went into running cross country without the greatest of attitudes.
“I was definitely going through the motions,” Parker said.
“She ended up running as a freshman, but I could feel that she wasn’t into it,” Edney said. “She didn’t put her all into it. She didn’t do the necessary mileage. Her feet and ankles were bad and weren’t used to the excessive pounding. All year long, I preached to her that she needed to run cross country to become a better track runner. She needed to get into it, but she didn’t have a lot of confidence in her ability. I always knew she had potential.”
Parker was also battling an educational dilemma. She wanted to become part of the prestigious nursing program at R-N.
“I always wanted to work in health care,” Parker said. “Ever since I was young, that’s what I wanted. I first wanted to be a doctor, but when I got into eighth grade, there was a CNA (Certified Nurse’s Assistant) program at Passaic County Tech. I really liked it and decided I wanted to try to go into the nursing field.”
Parker had to patiently wait to see if she gained acceptance in the Rutgers nursing program, but she also had to maintain a solid grade point average in her general studies to do so.
“It’s just something I wanted to do,” Parker said.
“I talked about it with her Mom and they knew how hard it was,” Edney said. “At first, she was going to leave the program, but then she decided to come back.”
When Parker began her sophomore season in September, there was an epiphany. It was like a light bulb went off.
“I knew I was getting older and I didn’t want to be called soft anymore,” Parker said. “I wanted to make Coach Edney proud and show him that I could do it. He’s always had so much confidence in me, so I figured I should at the very least give it a try.”
So instead of going through the motions, Parker was determined to give it her all.
The results were staggering.
“I was shocked,” Parker said. “I couldn’t believe I still had so much energy. I could actually go faster and for longer distances. I wasn’t getting tired. A lot of what he (Edney) said was coming true. Why should I try to go slow when I could go hard? I gave it my best.”
Parker was entered in a 6K race in Philadelphia two weeks ago.
“We were going to see what she was capable of,” Edney said. “She ran a 29:14 and I told her that she could get an even better time. Considering it was only her second cross country meet, she did well. She has the capability of running low 28 or high 27 by the end of the season. Little by little, her confidence is growing. She beat teammates she never beat before.”
A week later, at the Belmont Classic race at the Belmont Plateau in Philadelphia, Parker finished the 5K course in 23:58.44, the best time of all the Scarlet Raider runners and 23rd overall in a field of 72 runners.
Parker knows that the success in the fall is going to help as she moves forward into the indoor and outdoor seasons.
“That’s the plan,” Parker said. “I think that’s what I’m most excited about. I think it is going to help down the road, even later this year. I had to apply myself and push myself.”
Edney believes that Parker’s light has just begun to shine.
“All this confidence is going to prepare and push her for indoor track,” Edney said. “She endured it and has handled it. Right now, the confidence is there. She accepted her role. She actually grasped it and she’s trying to make a run with it.”
As Parker hopes educationally with a possible acceptance into the nursing program.
It appears as if Danielle Parker’s initial reluctance is going to pay huge dividends, both for her and the Scarlet Raiders’ cross country program.
