Track star Natya Glasco is ready for the next step with Rider University
It’s rare to see a coach and student get along so well, almost like family. But family is what drives sports and it is also what drives track star Natya Glasco to excel.
“She really helps me every day,” says Vera Trenchfield, coach of the Roslyn High School varsity girls track and field team of her senior star in Glasco.
“My coach and I have had such a great relationship over the last four years,” says Glasco.
That bond helped lead Glasco to become an all-county athlete by her sophomore year. In her junior year, Glasco became a member of the New York all-state team, where she was reaching more than 35 feet in the shot put, leading her to seven top-five results in 10 contests, highlighted by four runner-ups.
“I never thought I would take up a sport but my dad actually told me to consider doing a sport in the eighth grade,” says Glasco.
Once she tried out for the track and field team, Glasco was hooked. Her coach knew that she could be a star with the right work ethic and coaching.
Encouraged by her father, by ninth grade, Glasco was working out consistently and began to get stronger. Ever since then, she has only become a better athlete.
“It’s fun but it’s also hard because I’m setting an example for my four younger siblings,” she says. “When I perform poorly, they see and notice. I just want to do well all the time.”
This role model is succeeding not only as an athlete, but also as a student. The senior has committed to attend Rider University next year, where she will be a part of the women’s track and field team.
This athlete-coach friendship grew to an all-time high on June 1, 2018, when Glasco did something Trenchfield couldn’t have imagined.
For 30 years, no one at Roslyn High School touched Trenchfield’s shot put record of 38 feet. On that June day at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Section 8 Qualifier, Glasco did the unthinkable in 40 feet, one-inch. With a leap of faith and plenty of confidence, the record is now in the hands of Glasco, Trenchfield’s protégé.
“She broke my 30-year-old record,” Trenchfield says. “It’s such a blessing to see the athlete that I trained can come back 30 years to the month to break my record in the shot put.”
While Glasco says there is always room for improvement, she is as positive as it gets. And no matter what, she will always be thankful for what Trenchfield has done for her.
“My coach knew I was a good thrower and that I’d shine with anything I did,” says Glasco. “She kept me open to trying new things.
