Getting over each obstacle

Being a member of the cross country and track team is her life right now, but Zinzi Evans has other goals outside of running and is determined to accomplish them all

By Donna Taketa
The Collegian

Zinzi Evans needs a new pair of shoes. However, her pining doesn’t involve three-inch Manolo Blahniks or strappy Jimmy Choos, but rather sturdy, plain, running shoes.

“We’re supposed to get a new pair of shoes every 500 miles but we only get a new pair each season,” Evans said.

Evans, 20, a cross country and track athlete puts in a lot of miles as she barrels through her third season on the Fresno State women’s cross country team.

With practice twice a day, one in the early morning and one in the afternoon, Evans estimates the team runs between 40 and 50 miles every week, hence the tattered sneakers.

“The workouts are planned so that collectively the team gets faster as the season progresses,” Evans said. “When you’re on a schedule you get used to it; you just do it.”

At the Riverside Invitational this year, Evans clocked an 18:59 for the 5K run, a personal best. She is ranked second on the team after her times at the last three races.

“Zinzi is a great leader,” said women’s cross country coach Joe Gonzales. “She’s going to be a big help for the team.”

Dispelling the notion that running is a solitary sport, Evans emphasized the members work as a team.

“I feed off the other girls,” Evans said. “Practicing with each other, we push each other. Since we put in so many hours you can’t just do it on your own.”

In addition to lengthy practice hours, Evans balances academics and church involvement. The junior is a communicative disorders major.

“Running is my life right now,” she said. “I have a lot of ambitions but my focus is on school and track.”

Evans, a scholar athlete, was recruited to Fresno State from San Lorenzo High School in the Bay Area. She was recruited for track, a spring sport, but considers cross-country good conditioning.

“Long distance running is not really my forté,” Evans said. “5K is a lot for me, 6K is stretching it, but it’s not a bad thing.”

As a youngster, Evans began running when she was 8 years old.

At that age, she didn‘t care about winning but was “just a little thing running.”

Evans credits her parents with pushing her “but not in a bad way.”

“She has a passion to do well,” her father, Zishan Evans, said. He recalled Zinzi staying up late into the night completing school assignments even though she was exhausted.

“She has a lot of mother and father support; we nurture, push, motivate, praise and it was conducive to success,” Zishan said.

A published poet, Evans bestowed each of his seven children with a name beginning with the letter “Z.”

“It’s our trademark, we took care in selecting the names, they had to have a pretty sound to us,” Zishan said. “Zinzi’s name evokes warmth. She’s a people-person and very friendly; people all around gravitate towards her.”

Once at Fresno State, Evans had to adjust to the campus and the dorms.

“When they say the Freshman 15, they’re not playing,” Evans said.

The Freshman 15 is the term coined for the weight gain by freshmen due to stress and acclimating to college life.

“The food was really not the best for athletes,” Evans said. “I don’t really have to restrict myself from eating, but fried chicken strips every night?”

Evans says she does need calories to fuel her long, often strenuous days.

Into her junior year at Fresno State, Evans has career goals that don’t rely on athletics.

“It’s like my mom always says, I can’t put all my eggs in one basket,” said Evans.

Accordingly, she is working toward being an interpreter for people who are hearing impaired. Evans has studied sign language since high school and said she might like a government or freelance position.

“Interpreters are in high demand right now, and I feel like I can speak God’s word through signing,” Evans said.

Evans would also consider coaching for a hobby. This is after she settles back in the Bay Area to be near her family and her boyfriend, who she credits as a strong supporter.

In the meantime Evans and the cross-country team will face new obstacles at the Stanford Invitational this Saturday. Evans will compete in the 6K.

“When I run I’m not nervous about who I’m competing against,” Evans said. “I’m not, ‘what uniform are they wearing?’ I’m concerned with my performance. I feed off myself.”

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