February 10, 2007 was just another day at the office for senior distance runner Amy Hastings.
Hastings set the American Collegiate record for the 5,000m at the Husky Classic last weekend. The feat added to an already impressive resume for arguably the best female distance runner to ever come through ASU.
"It felt really awesome," Hastings said. "I had actually just found out what the record was about a week beforehand. [Distance coach Louie Quintana] said he thought I could do it, and he's never said I've been able to do anything that I haven't been able to."
Hastings has been one of the anchors of the women's distance and cross country teams since 2002. She has chalked up almost every honor possible, including numerous All-American awards, national and conference championships, a Pac-10 Athlete of the Year award and school and national records.
"I always look at her kind of as a pioneer," Quintana said. "We've had a lot of good people come through this program, but she's really kind of set the bar across the board for our women's team."
Hastings began her running career in high school in Leavenworth, Kan., where she won three state championships and set two school records.
Her great high school career brought her from Kansas to Tempe as she chose ASU because of its program.
"I got along really well with [the coaches] and the girls on the team," Hastings said.
Hastings started her college career off with a bang as she helped the team win second place at the Pac-10 championships and also was named second team All Pac-10 during her freshman season.
During her sophomore year, Hastings continued to shine as she was named first team All-American in cross country. In track, she was also named to the All-American team in the indoor 5,000m and also won her first Pac-10 championship in the 3,000m steeplechase.
The 2004 cross country season was even better for Hastings as she won ASU's first- ever conference championship in the sport and earned All-American honors for the second time.
During track season the following spring, she also earned All-American honors in the indoor 5,000m and set a school record in the outdoor 10,000m run despite being injured for most of the season.
In the 2005 cross country season, Hastings earned yet another All-American title and became the first Sun Devil to win the award three times.
That spring, she also won the 5,000m run at the 2006 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, which she regards as the biggest accomplishment of her career.
"I worked really hard for it," Hastings said. "I had wanted that for so long and then it happened, and it was just great."
In her final year at ASU, Hastings ended her cross country career on a high note as she won the 2006 USA Cross Country title.
Now with her final track season underway, Hastings wants to make the most out of her last races at ASU.
"I really just want to take each race one race at a time," Hastings said. "My senior year of high school I kind of realized too late what I thought I could accomplish. I don't want that to be the case this year, so I want to take every single race and just go out there to set a record or win."
Hastings credits her work ethic as the reason she has had such a successful college career.
"I work really, really hard for everything I get, and I hope people see that," Hastings said. "I've been blessed with a natural ability, but at the same time I have to work a lot harder than other people to do what I've achieved."
Despite being a member of the cross country and track teams and running a mind-boggling 90 miles a week, Hastings has also had a chance to enjoy the other parts of college life.
"I really have tried to keep a balanced attitude towards [college] and not just being really obsessed with the running," Hastings said. "I wanted to have a college experience, too, so I take advantage of having fun and hanging out with my friends."
After graduating from ASU, Hastings hopes to take her career to the next level and run professionally.
"I'm going after my dreams," Hastings said. "I know what I'm going to do. I just have to figure out how."
"She has certainly set herself up to have a good post collegiate career," Quintana said. "Hopefully she will find a place that will work well with her with other post collegiate runners."
With her place in ASU cross country and track history all but set in stone, Hastings hopes to be remembered as someone who worked hard for everything she wanted to achieve.
"I hope I have been an example to people on the team," Hastings said. "I hope they realized that I've worked really hard for what I've accomplished and that they can do it too."
According to her coach, Hastings has definitely made a lasting impact at ASU.
"There will never, ever be another Amy Hastings here," Quintana said. "Hopefully we'll have many girls win national titles over the next 30 years, but I'll always remember Amy's 5K win as being the crowning achievement of not only her career, but the beginning of what we can do here at Arizona State."
Reach the reporter at: gina.mizell@asu.edu.
