Carson High graduate Sawyer Macy stands in front of a building on the campus of Lehigh University. Macy will compete with the Mountain Hawks, starting in the fall.
You’ll need a spreadsheet to accurately tally the accomplishments of Carson High graduate Sawyer Macy.
Macy was one of Carson High’s top students in the classroom and will head to Lehigh University to compete in track and cross country after rewriting nearly every Senator distance record.
After graduating earlier this month, one of Carson High’s most accomplished distance runners traveled to the Outdoor National Track and Field Championships at the University of Oregon for his final race as a prep-level athlete.
He finished his career by knocking off one more Senator record, posting the quickest 3,000-meter time in school history at 8 minutes, 46.07 seconds, dethroning Richard Shroy’s previous mark of 8:53.32, which was set in 2009.
He concludes his career in royal blue and white with the 5,000-meter, 3,000-meter and 1,600-meter school records.
He also owns an individual regional track championship in the 3,200 this past spring as well as a team (2024) and individual (2023) cross country title, too.
SHIFTING PERSPECTIVE
Macy’s perspective exemplifies his maturity.
He battled injuries throughout his time as a high school athlete and in 2024 said he fueled himself in races through, “trying to think about something that makes me angry.”
A year later, he admits that approach needed a little refinement.
“I think I'm trying to step away from that definitely,” said Macy. “When I ran angry, I ran fast and I was competitive and all that, but I don't think it was necessarily the healthiest way to run. I think that I can run just as fast while having a different mindset.”
The final race of his high school career — in which he broke the school’s 3,000-meter record — was centered on appreciating his moment.
Macy dialed back his mileage in training significantly at the end of the track season, making it difficult to put together the blistering times he’s become accustomed to when he travels outside of Northern Nevada to compete.
At the Outdoor Championships in Eugene — which came five weeks after the 5A state track meet — he got some advice from a fellow competitor, who suggested he immerse himself in the experience.
“I came for the experience; I got the experience. In terms of competing in the 5K, I was like 40 seconds off my cross country PR, so not too hot there,” Macy said. “… The next two days when I focused on like, having fun with it … I just enjoyed the moment and enjoyed being in the stadium and that's when the record happened. It was by no means the fastest race I've ever run, but it was such a fun race. It was great to get that record.”
RECRUITMENT
Focusing on the love of the sport itself will serve him well as he jumps to the Division I level.
Collegiate athletics is a unique beast compared to high school sports and recent changes in the NCAA’s landscape have dramatically altered the recruiting process.
Coaches began telling Macy they didn’t have a spot for him as roster sizes continue to shrink in Olympic sports.
“A lot of these coaches that would usually have a spot for me, or recruiting or walk-on or whatever, they would be like, ‘We can't guarantee that you'll have a spot in two years or when our team gets limited to 16 spots.’ So, a lot of schools kind of closed me out in that sense,” said Macy.
It was actually a former Carson High athlete and friend, Tristan Rutledge, who initially pointed Macy in the direction of Lehigh.
The campus itself stunned Macy, who described the buildings as “cathedral-esque,” reminding him of Hogwarts in the Harry Potter universe.
Lehigh, located in Bethlehem, Pa., is roughly 90 minutes north of Philadelphia and 90 minutes west of New York, giving Macy a first-hand look at all the East Coast has to offer.
“The East Coast is a lot different than here,” said Macy. “The campus was great. It's not super-big to where it feels like you're not significant. … I feel like as I go there, I can do something that can actually make a difference at a school.”
Macy plans on studying engineering when he gets to campus.
His favorite moments from his Carson High career, alongside his regional crowns, were training and competing as a team alongside friends Rutledge, Alex Miner and Sean Thornton.
“Sophomore year training … that was one of my best memories, just like having fun with my teammates in this sport, because this sport is a lot of individual,” said Macy. “We were around the same skill level, around the same mile, all that; we could just do everything together.”
(Carson High’s Sawyer Macy competes in a cross country race in the fall in the Senatos’r royal blue and white uniform. Macy took down one more school record in his final race of his prep career last week at the Outdoor National Championships in Eugene, Ore. / Ron Harpin)