By: Brian Bowers ’16

Looking at Matt Lico you would not guess that he is the premiere sophomore on the Seattle Prep cross-country team, but seeing him in action is a whole different story. With many great athletes it is in their genetics, however for Lico this is not exactly the case. Lico’s father was an all-star high school Offensive Lineman who even considered playing college football, so long distance running isn’t really in his blood.                  Lico started his running career in spring of 8th grade when he reluctantly joined Brighton’s track team after much persuasion from his friends. “I joined track mainly to hang out with my friends,” says Matt “and it took me a little while to get the hang of it.”

By the time freshman year came around Matt was in the middle of the pack but didn’t stand out as much as he does now. Matt worked countless hours in the off-season with his coaches Ben Sauvage and Dr. Robinson to get faster.

“I couldn’t have done it without them” says Lico, referring to his stunning times in the 2013 Seattle Prep Alumni Race. The race was a two mile time trial that consisted of over 70 current and former Seattle Prep XC runners. Lico finished 11th overall and 6th of all current Prep runners with a time of 11:28. His time also put him in the top 25 of all Prep sophomores ever at that race, which is quite a feat at a school like Prep which has had podium finishes in state 14 out of the last 15 years. When asked about what motivated him, Lico replied “I have always wanted to be the best at something, and I’m hoping cross-country will get me there.” But Lico won’t stop at just being the fastest sophomore, he is looking forward to these next 3 seasons and hopefully leading Seattle Prep to a state championship.