Eileen McLain will be running at EPCC which has found a great amount of success in recent years with their Cross Country program. She also has competed against some of the nation's very best at meets like NxR, Desert Twilight Invitational and the legendary Woodbridge Cross Country Classic. In 2018, McLain helped lead a girl's team to State which had not been done at Eastwood HS in 30 years according to her father and coach, Mike McLain.
Notable Performances Include:
5:44.11 - 1600M at the Fred Loya Invitational 2020
18:38.60 - Three Mile Run, 69th place at the Woodbridge Cross Country Classic 2018
12:11.99 - 3200M, 5th place at the Willie Williams Invitational 2018
TxMileSplit - You've decided to stay local and run under a great program at EPCC who just came off an incredible cross country season. You'll also be joining your former teammate Lauren Villareal. Did this influence your decision to stay here and run? What other factors played a role into your decision?
E. McLain - Yes, the opportunity to be on the same team with Lauren again definitely influenced me in my discussion. Also I felt that running for EPCC would give me a great opportunity to see what it is like running in college.
TxMileSplit - You've seen a great range of competition during your 4 years at Eastwood, which included multiple appearances at NxR, Desert Twilight, 1 State birth in 2018, and a couple of trips to the Woodbridge Invitational. How do you think these challenges shaped you as a runner and how do you translate that type of experience to see success at a collegiate level?
E. McLain - Being able to compete against many other great teams exposed me to the fact that these teams work hard and helped me develop a work ethic that I will carry with me to college. I am also use to the travel and the pressure of big meets.
TxMileSplit - Your dad is well regarded as a coach in El Paso and what a lot don't know is that he himself had a very successful high school running career. Did you feel any pressure running under your dad carrying on the McLain legacy and if so how did you manage to handle it so well?
E. McLain - There was never any pressure from my dad or my family in any way, the only kind of pressure felt came from outside my family being the coach's daughter and all.
TxMileSplit - What are some of your running goals going into college and how would you compare them to ones you set out for yourself during your 4 years in high school?
E. McLain - As a freshman my first goal will be to be a top 7 runner, and now I am looking forward to running the half marathon and setting some goals with that.
TxMileSplit - You're a bit of an underdog story. You ran and saw success at the smallest middle school in the city placing top 5 and winning district with your team and you've also helped lead your varsity girls team to multiple district championships and a trip to state. Your varsity girls in general always seem to be eclipsed by all of the boy's national accolades and attention. But when your name comes up in the conversation amongst the boys you always command a lot of respect. They talk a lot about your level of commitment and dedication to your team. So to have this level of endorsement naturally holds a lot of weight. How did you manage to set the tone for your team over the 4 years there and what would you tell your future teammates who have the obvious potential to do the same?
E. McLain - I have never talked a lot, I try to speak with my action instead.
TxMileSplit - The last McLain will be leaving your program for the final time. This has to be a bittersweet moment for you. What makes her journey different from the rest?
C. McLain - Eileen is a lot like me, she had to work hard for everything, and nothing was given. Along the way there were lots of challenges for her as for me and she is stubborn and WILL NOT let ANYONE hold her back. When we finally get to go back to practice and school, there will be something missing not having her (or any of my kids) in my room on the bus or on my team is going to hurt for a while. But like I tell my athletes who are sad when a teammate graduates or when their time is over, if you are sad and it hurts when it's over, then that tells you what it was worth. I will be hurting, and it was well worth it!!!
TxMileSplit - Speaking as a father who coached his kids, how do you find the way to separate being a dad and being a coach?
C. McLain - I was lucky to be able to watch a lot of other coaches, coach their kids first before it was my time. Unfortunately I saw a lot of strained relationships and I did not want that! I figured that no matter what I said, in my kid's mind it was coming from dad not from coach. So I was dad when I coached them. Every once and a while the coach slipped out, but not often and I got rid of him quickly. I had a parent Ernesto Rios in 2009-2012, Ernesto was a pretty good runner in his day so you would think he would have been an over involved parent? But no he understood that this was his kids time not his. His son grew up playing baseball and he was shocked when he decided to run in high school. So I use to love to be near him after a race, it didn't matter if his kid ran well or had an off race, he would always tell me "isn't this awesome, I love every minute of this. Mr. Rios was the running parent I wanted to be!!! He passed away not to long after his son graduated and I'm so glad he was so positive and enjoyed it, instead what some parents do with high school athletics, he enjoyed every minute good and bad. So that's what I wanted to do, as all 4 of my children made their way through my program. Mr. Rios was always on my mind and enjoying every minute good and bad.
TxMileSplit - Which moment for her stands out to you the most and how do you think that'll shape up for a successful college running career?
C. McLain - Two moments. First her freshman year the older girls were in a bad habit of running way too slow on our long runs and she just said no way and ran a quicker pace despite the pressure from the other girls to slow down. She won't let anyone hold her down. Second was her shorted senior season, she had been fighting some blood issues for about a year and a half which affected her performances in a really bad way. This was really hard on her confidence, but she never missed a day of running and once she overcame it was having a great senior season before it was cut short. She won't let anything or anyone hold her down. I know in college she will face challenges, and I know she won't let anything hold her down.