Photo by Bill Haufe
By Caley Breese
If there is a word to describe 17-year-old Colin Elliott, it would have to be busy. The rising senior, who attends Easton High School on the Eastern Shore, stays busy by participating on the varsity soccer and track teams, as well as playing on the year-round travel soccer team, Shore FC, which is coached by former professional soccer player, G.R. Cannon.
While he seems to be more focused on soccer, Elliott runs track to stay in shape for soccer, competing in the mile and the 800-meter sprint.
“I’ve always been good at running, so that helped me get into soccer,” Elliott explains. “I just like soccer, so I continued with it. With track, I like running so it works out.”
When Elliott is in-season for soccer, which takes place in the fall, he has practice every day. During the winter and spring months, Elliott practices at least twice a week for Shore FC. Throughout the summer, he has time off from soccer, but focuses on lifting.
Soccer and track aren’t the only activities Elliott is involved with. The junior stays active in many different extracurricular activities, including participating in Teen Court as an attorney, It’s Academic, Spanish Honor Society, and National Honor Society, where he now serves as president.
“It’s hard, I’ll say that,” Elliott explains as he talks about how busy he stays. “Basically in the last month or two, I haven’t had any free time at all.”
Elliott’s hard work has surely paid off. He carries a GPA over 4.0 and is on the Principal’s Honor Roll, and was recently granted the Rensselaer Medal Award for his success in math and science. This award honors high school students who have excelled in math and science; hopefully encouraging them to pursue a career in science, engineering, and technology. By receiving this honor, Elliott has been awarded a merit scholarship, valued at $25,000 per year for four years, should he choose to attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Photo by Shirlynn Shafer
Elliott seems to have a general idea of what he’d like to pursue after college, but still having another year left of high school, he has plenty time to figure it out.
“I want to do something relating to math or science, but I have no idea yet. I’m still looking,” he laughs.
However, it seems that Elliott has many different directions he could take in terms of attending college. He said that he’d like to play soccer in college, but would also run track as a backup. If he did continue with soccer or track, he’d like to attend a Division III school.
“It’d be easier to play. Plus, I like the small school environment,” Elliott says. “I would like to stay in the general area, like Pennsylvania or Virginia.”
Although Elliott doesn’t know what is in store for him after high school quite yet, he looks forward to a good time.
“It’d be cool to play sports and have a good education at the same time, and just have fun.”