Double trouble
KARNS CITY — Everyday life is a balancing act for all student-athletes.
There aren't many who can do it quite like Emily Schumacher.
The Karns City senior is a two-year captain for the Gremlins' defending District 9 champion and undefeated girls soccer team. She's also the school's top runner and a returning state qualifier in cross country.
Schumacher's talent is evident while she roams the pitch at midfielder or blazes through the trail on a cross country course, but her impact reaches well beyond what she brings to the teams athletically.
“She's a rarity,” said Karns City girls soccer coach Lisa Castiglione. “She always leads by example. As a captain, it's great because whatever she demands from the team, she gives back two-fold to them.”
“She's a great athlete and a super kid, too,” said Karns City cross country coach Colin Gaiser. “I couldn't ask for a nicer girl than her. She's like a big sister to a lot of girls. If they've had a tough day, she kind of takes them under her wing and talks to them.
“She's an excellent student, too, on top of all of that.”
Life might be a little easier on Schumacher if she concentrated on one sport, but the thought has never crossed her mind.
“I don't like giving up on things, even if it's difficult,” Schumacher said. “I've done this for a long time.”
In some ways, the busy schedule helps keep her life in order.
“I think it's easier when you have a lot of sports and extra curriculars going on,” Schumacher explained. “It's easy to manage time when there is very little time to mess around with. You come home and you have an hour to do homework and that's when you do it. There isn't any questioning that.”
Soccer games and cross country meets are typically on different days during the regular season, but some conflicts are inevitable.
Schumacher and Emily Jones — who is also a starter for the girls soccer team — qualified for the PIAA Class A cross country championships last season. But the state meet fell on the same day as the District 9 soccer title game.
The girls chose both.
“That was actually on my birthday,” said Schumacher. “It was pretty cool, especially with Emily Jones going out there with me. It's always more fun when there's someone else.
“We went out a day before the state meet, ran in the morning and then right after the meet, we gathered up our stuff.”The girls made the trip from Hershey to Clarion — stopping to grab a bite to eat on the way — and arrived about an hour before the game.The Gremlins blanked Curwensville 4-0, avenging a title game loss from the previous season.“It worked out pretty well for everyone,” said Schumacher. “Two years ago, the D-9 championship was also on my birthday and that didn't go so well. It was nice payback, I guess.“One of our main goals is to return to the D-9 championship game, do well there and hopefully move on to the next level of the state playoffs,” she added.Castiglione certainly appreciates what they bring to her 14-0 squad.“(Schumacher) is definitely one of the most skilled players on my team,” said Castiglione. “All around, she's a great person, great athlete and great student. She's a well-rounded individual.“(Jones) is one of our most patient players, she's very composed and has great vision of the field.”The cross country team was struggling for numbers and was in danger of not having enough runner to qualify as a team.Schumacher and Jones made sure it didn't happen by recruiting soccer teammates Abby Wolfe and Collette Stahlman.“We hit the soccer girls up pretty hard and we got a couple of them to come over,” said Schumacher. “That was a big deal to give us enough to have a team. It was important.“The coaches are really good with (sharing athletes). It's pretty nice,” she added. “A lot of kids at a lot of other schools don't get that chance. We're pretty lucky.”Schumacher is also a standout for the Karns City girls basketball team and was the District 9 champion in the 400-meter run as a junior during track season. She was second in the 800.“She just has heart,” said Gaiser. “She just wills herself to do this and pulls her team with her. She brings the best out in everyone else.“She's just a special athlete,” he added. “We know what we have now, but we'll really realize it when she's gone.”
