Tyner track standout Alexis Reviere, center, with her mother Theresa and father Michael. Reviere will run collegiately at Tennessee Wesleyan.
Tyner Academy track standout Alexis Reviere has signed a track and cross country scholarship with Tennessee Wesleyan College on Wednesday afternoon.
Reviere, who will complete her athletic career at Tyner this spring with, hopefully, a third straight trip to the TSSAA state meet in Murfreesboro, also received academic financial assistance with her scholarship.
TWC third-year women’s track coach Shawn Jakubowksi said he is excited to add Reviere, 17, to his squad, which competes in the Appalachian Athletic Conference.
“I look at her to add depth to our women’s mid-distance team,” Jakubowki said in an e-mail.
“She will focus on the 800-meter run. We have a very good 4x800 team, but are one leg short and Alexis will step into that position.”
Jakubowski also said he envisions Reviere making a “huge impact” on the school’s cross country team as well.
“Once she gets some longer mileage under her belt,” he said, “her longer distance times will drop dramatically.”
As a sophomore, Reviere helped the Lady Rams win a 4x100 relay state title with a time of 49.88 seconds. The other three runners on that winning team were Hannah Marshall, Vivian Smith and Mia Smith.
Last spring, the 4x100 team finished third (49.68) behind Hume-Fogg (49.23) and Craigmont (49.67).
“I run the 400 and 800 meters and our first meet is this Saturday,” Reviere said. “I’m very hopeful of making the state in the 800 this season.”
Reviere chose the Lady Bulldogs, over Tennessee State, Indiana Tech, Kentucky State, where she was accepted, and Brevard in North Carolina.
After visiting the Athens, Tenn., campus, Reviere learned about the school’s biology program – she eventually wants to become a pediatrician – and talked with the track coaches she made up her mind to attend the small Methodist-affiliated college.
“I loved the campus, they have a good biology program – that’s my major – and it’s the perfect school for me,” Reviere said.
As a first-year member of the Lady Rams’ resurrected cross country team, Reviere qualified for the state meet this past fall and placed 76th in a field of 200-plus runners.
“She basically did cross country to stay in shape,” Reviere’s mother, Theresa said. “She’s been running track since she was 7 and also competes with the Chattanooga Jets in the summer and winter.”
Alexis said that actually she got a little nudge toward cross country from her Jets coach in the form of a challenge.
“I was told running cross country would help me with endurance and lead to better times in my main events,” she said. “The coach at TWC told me I already have pretty good times, but he would have me around 2:15 in the 800 my freshman season. I loved hearing him say that.”
Shalunda Shackelford, Reviere’s coach at Tyner, knows how well her 800 specialist takes to coaching and the drive she has to succeed.
“Alexis never misses a practice and her drive and determination are beyond most athletes,” Shackelford said. “She takes it to the next level and that’s something we definitely need at Tyner.
“Because of what we’ve seen her do with us, she never gives up, she’s always pushing herself, making sure she does better than the last time, that’s the drive I’m talking about. And she’s very coachable. All that will be carried on to TWC. I know they’ll see that in her.”
Jakubowski has already seen that.
“She has a lot of potential and I think she will be one of our better mid-distance girls next year,” he said.
(E-mail Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @larryfleming44)