“Sports are better when you have motivation for it other than receiving PE credits,” said Kayla Gacosta. “Make your friends join with you so that you genuinely enjoy it.”

Gacosta runs for Armijo’s Cross Country team. “I was planning on doing Track, so Cross Country was a way for me to train before the season started,” she said. She began running when she attended Crystal Middle School.

Her favorite event was the Woodbridge Invitational in 2016. “I got to connect with other runners from different countries,” she said.

Running is a sport that Gacosta enjoys doing and, although she may not pursue it when she toes to UC Davis, she did say that she still wants to continue running for herself. She is hoping to major in Environmental Engineering.

On-campus she is involved in the Robotics program and off-campus she is a Sunday School teacher assistant at her church. Gacosta has three older brothers – Eljay, Jairon and Lester – who are all Armijo graduates. They are also her role models “because they are passionate in everything they do,” she said.

While she is in her last year at Armijo, she has noticed that there is room for improvement on the campus. One thing she would change, if she could, is to expand the artwork. “I would encourage more murals to make Armijo’s exterior look more unique,” she said. If it were possible, she would also like to see the campus lay-out changed “because the halls get too crammed during passing period.”