I need help on deciding whose side I should take in this matter.
A few of my teammates have a vendetta against this one girl on my team. They think she's not a team player who thinks she is better than the rest of us. In private they talk about how much they hate her and then pretend to be nice to her to her face. They hate the fact that she's faster than them and that she often pushes the pace on runs and workouts.
However, I do not see her actions as cockiness. I have always believed that you shouldn't hold somebody back if they are capable of running faster paces just because they aren't running "with the pack." If I had always stayed back running with the group in high school I would have never gotten faster.
I think a lot of the hate comes from the attention she gets from the coach and the others resent that. She's also more introverted and quiet on runs so she doesn't talk much, but she has never been mean in any way or criticized anyone (that I know of). The others take her quietness as disinterest or judgement, but I think she's just a shy personality that doesn't have anyone else to connect with (she was the only freshman). She works hard and doesn't take any shortcuts.
I can see the other side too. If coach gives us a pace/split to run she usually runs faster than that. Sometimes I feel like I have to match her pace even though it's faster than it's supposed to be so that I don't get crap from the coach. And maybe she makes comments that come off a little bitter.
Am I right by saying that they are probably just jealous that she's faster? How do I react to their snide comments? I don't want to lose their friendship, but I also don't want to run off the other girl or isolate her anymore.