Some background for context: I started running my freshman year of high school in distance track and came to really like it, so I also joined cross country starting that summer. I did wrestling my sophomore and junior year and practiced over the summer in between along with XC. Junior year I came to hate it and quit after finishing. I’m currently a senior and was disappointed with my XC season which spurred me to focus on running (had never ran in winter other than cutting weight runs once a week) and be as best at track as possible.
I was recently accepted to UC Santa Cruz, which was one of my main options overall and not just for being a D3 school. Unfortunately my aid does not cover enough for me to not need at least a part-time job while at school. I know it’s possible to make college classes/sports/part-time job work, but I’m not sure if I even want to.
I liked running enough to stick with XC and track (in progress) through my senior year but did get sidetracked a bit with wrestling which I eventually hated because after the “honeymoon” of a new sport I felt that my work didn’t pay off well and practice began feeling like a chore. I’m not sure if my desire to run in college is just the fumes of my disappointment from XC and if the combination of three commitments will cause a similar falling out to wrestling. I still like running but I honestly do feel a bit mentally taxed from all the competition, which again I’m not sure if it is just general senioritis setting in and can be fixed with the typical postseason 2 week break.
So my questions are: Should I run in D3 college? If you ran in college and had a job, how was your experience running and time wise? D3 at the same university and part-time would be a lucky coincidence and more relatable but any input helps.