Erica Dale
Second runner-up female Scholar-Athlete
Erica Dale
Logan Elm
Grade-point avg.: 4.35
$4,500
Encova Insurance
Sports played: Track (4 years), cross country (3), golf (1)
Academic highlights: AP Scholar with Honor; Honda-OSU STEM Award winner; National Honor Society member; scored 34 on ACT
Athletic highlights: Regional qualifier in track; second-team all-league in cross country; honorable-mention all-league in golf
College choice: Ohio State (anticipated major: biology/pre-medicine)
Photo location: I chose Hargus Lake because it is where I spent summers training for the upcoming cross country season. I also run there with my dog, Bo, in the offseason.
Home front: I live on my family’s farm with my mom, Angela; my dad, Chris; my 20-year-old brother, James; and my 19-year-old sister, Lynne. We take care of the horses and cattle, but there is a farmer, John, who farms the fields.
Favorite subject: My favorite class has always been art. Experimenting with new mediums and techniques is always exciting.
Least-favorite subject: My least favorite subject is English because there can be so many interpretations of a piece of writing. I prefer subjects with definite answers, like math.
Prized possession: The memories I’ve made growing up on a farm. I’ve had many unique experiences that I wouldn’t have been able to have anywhere else.
Favorite book: “The Maze Runner,” by James Dashner, was one of my favorite books because it is action-packed. I felt as if I was watching a movie when I read it.
Favorite movie: The original, animated version of “The Lion King” will always be one of my favorite movies. It’s just a classic.
Favorite television shows: I love to watch crime shows like “How to Get Away with Murder” and “Criminal Minds.”
Favorite musician: I don’t really have a favorite. I like to listen to all sorts of music like rap, pop, country and R&B.
Essential app: I couldn’t do without Google. It has answers to all of my random questions.
Favorite home-cooked meal: My favorite meal is flank steak with twice baked potatoes, made by my mom.
My cooking specialty: I can make a pretty tasty cheesecake.
Favorite restaurant: Bob Evans is my go-to restaurant. I could eat their blueberry pancakes at any time of the day.
Guilty pleasure: Ice cream is one of my biggest guilty pleasures. Chocolate is my favorite flavor.
Proudest sports moment: Qualifying for the regional meet in track with my 4x800m relay team two years in a row. I wish we had had the chance to do it a third time!
Sport I’d like to try someday: I think it’d be fun to try windsurfing. I’ve always loved water sports, so I think I’d enjoy it.
Favorite athlete: My favorite athlete is Nastia Liukin. I grew up admiring her astounding gymnastics abilities.
Inspiration: My parents inspire me. They both work so hard to create the best life for me and my siblings, while teaching us to put our utmost effort into everything we do.
Dream job: I hope to become an orthopedic surgeon one day.
Place I’d like to travel: I’d like to travel to Aruba to see its beautiful clear waters.
Something most people don’t know about me: A photo of me was published in a “National Geographic” magazine. My grandpa was a photographer for them, and one summer we were vacationing in the Turks and Caicos while he was working on a digital photography story. He gave cameras to me and my siblings so we could take photos from our perspectives. At the end of the day, little me crashed in bed and my dad snapped a cute photo of me sleeping. The editors chose to include it because that was part of our vacation story.
Least-favorite household chore: My least-favorite chore happens to be my most common: mowing. I spend about eight hours a week mowing our farm. It can get very boring.
Something I can’t get right no matter how hard I try: I’ve always wanted to be able to whistle with my fingers, but I can never figure it out.
Words to leave by: “Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.” — Jennifer Lee
By Ray Stein
rstein@dispatch.com