Recent Alliance High School Graduate Macala Hood is chasing her dreams and her passions.
Hood recently signed with Mount Marty University in South Dakota, where she was recruited for the track and field team and a major in pre-vet.
Hood grew up on a cow-calf operation east of Alliance. She began volleyball, track and field, basketball and 4-H in middle school. Hood then participated in cross country, basketball, 4-H, FFA, and track and field throughout her high school career, where FFA and track were among her favorites throughout her high school career.
“I raise and show my goats, then I take them to the county and state level and, show them and I’ve done very well. For track and field, I’ve had some good times and some low times, but it has been one of my favorite sports throughout my high school career,” said Hood.
Hood started running in middle school, where she first found her love for track and field.
“It’s more individual sports-wise, and you can focus on yourself. It’s more of a mental game, so you have to be for yourself and worry about that,” said Hood.
Hood agreed with the notion “Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional” when it comes to running.
“It depends on the runner and how mentally strong you can be. I was the only hurdler on the Alliance Track and Field team for my junior year. Mentally I had to know that I was one for one. It was on me. I had a good coaching staff, but it was hard to split between all the other runners that had different sports, so I had to focus on myself and take outside critiques and stuff,” said Hood.
Hood learned a lot of valuable lessons in her high school career, but none was more important than taking risks.
“Take risks on things and be involved in basically everything. You’ll learn many lessons and appreciate what’s around you at the time,” said Hood.
Hood signed with Mount Marty for track and field, and she chose the college based on the coaching and welcoming she had on a visit and the new track facility they had just built.
“I went to a college visit there, and they were just very welcoming with open arms. Coach Becker, who was the assistant coach, just made me feel welcomed there and was very nice and talked to me for a long time on the phone. I just felt very comfortable there. They just built a brand new track and field house, so that’s also a plus that I get to work in a facility like that,” said Hood.
Hood accomplished many things throughout her high school career. Some of the awards she won were: a varsity letter winner all four years of track and field and lettering three years in basketball and cross country. She was a three-year award winner for Alliance High School, most improved in track and field her junior year.
Hood got the best teammate and the most improved in basketball. She earned MVP for basketball and track and field her senior year, and she made the Western Academic and All-State Conference. She also went to state with FFA for livestock judging and was state runner-up as a team, and she earned her state degree, which is the highest level a person can achieve on an SAE. On her 4-H team, she won state her sophomore year and went to nationals in Louisville, Ken., for livestock judging, where her team tied for 11th.
Hood is majoring in pre-veterinary at Mounty Marty because she is passionate about animals and agriculture.
“I have lived on a cow and calf operation my whole life. We’ve always ranched, and I started raising my goats when I was ten years old. I love agriculture and animals, so I want to keep pursuing that in my future,” said Hood.
Hood has a message for underclassmen currently going through high school.
“Go out and be part of all the clubs. You can learn many lessons from being involved in everything and learning about time management. Have fun. You only have four years of high school, so enjoy it,” said Hood.
(Photos Courtesy of Colleen Hood)