Without question, Sydney Leitner had made the most of being a student-athlete at Binghamton University.

Although she is only a first semester junior, Leitner has already been a two-time America East All-Conference selection in both track and cross country. Last October, she was the second-best runner on Binghamton's first-ever America East women's cross country championship team.

Apart from running, Leitner has earned awards for both her academic success as well as her work interning within the Binghamton Sports Medicine Department. In addition, she is part of the Executive Board of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

Five years ago, however, being a Division I student-athlete was the furthest thing from Leitner's mind. She grew up in Yorktown Heights (N.Y.) and was a sophomore at Yorktown High School. By her own admission, Leitner wasn't into playing sports.

"I wasn't much of an athlete growing up," she said. "I had done martial arts for over 11 years, but other than being in the dojo, I was much more of a student than any kind of athlete. I loved reading - and still do - and I used to play the piano quite a bit."

In her sophomore year at Yorktown, Leitner joined the indoor track & field team. She competed in the sprint and hurdle events – but still didn't consider herself to be any kind of an successful athlete.

"I started with 55-meter hurdles and it's safe to say that was not my forte," she said. "I was put in that event due to my flexibility from martial arts and I was quick enough on my feet to fill my team's needs in that event."

Following the indoor track season, however, the COVID-19 pandemic shut everything down. With the 2020 outdoor track & field season canceled, Leitner had to find an activity to keep her going. She turned to distance running.

"When the pandemic hit, I was left at a standstill," she said. "Thankfully, I had befriended some of the kids on the cross country team. The furthest team member lived a mere two miles from me and it presented me with a great opportunity to get into distance running. With the pandemic shutting down every indoor activity I could think of, including my dojo, running just seemed the perfect activity to pick up."

By the time things returned to normal, Leitner had begun to enjoy distance running so much that she joined the Yorktown cross country team. She also specialized in the distance track events.

Unlike the sprint and hurdle events before the pandemic, Leitner excelled as a distance runner. She was named All-New York State (NYS) Federation in both cross country and was an All-American in the 5,000 at the 2022 New Balance National Outdoor Track & Field Meet. Leitner was also a top-10 finisher at the 2021 NYS Cross Country championships.

"I was pretty shocked at all of the success I was having," she said. "My first distance race was six months after I first started training and while I had accomplished a lot in that time, I had never pushed myself for more than 400 meters in a race. I will credit my genetics for a lot of my fortune as both my parents were competitive athletes in high school, but as I was not a runner let alone an athlete before March 2020, so my success on the course caught me way off guard."

When it came time to chose where to go for college, Leitner was more than prepared. Before the pandemic, she had not considered competing in a sport past high school. That gave her a chance to become acquainted specifically with the academics at Binghamton University.

"Not being involved in athletics for the first half of my high school career gave me a unique experience when compared to a lot of my fellow student-athletes," she said. "My mother is a Decker School of Nursing alumni, so I had been familiar with Binghamton and its programs since I was young. As my interests and exposures drove me to take an interest in medicine, I had considered Binghamton as an option since my sophomore year of high school. When I realized I was also athletically eligible to compete for our cross-country team, I knew I had to reach out."

At first glance, Leitner's adjustment to life at Binghamton was smooth. She placed fifth overall at the 2022 America East Cross Country Championships and was named the meet's Most Outstanding Female Rookie. In the classroom, she was earning grades high enough to be named to the America East Fall Commissioner's Honor Roll (3.5 GPA or above).

Deep down, however, Leitner was still adjusting to life as a college student.

"I was pretty stressed out as a freshman, and I didn't really have my priorities sorted out," she said. "There was so much to do and "no time" to do it."

Fortunately for Leitner, she was part of a veteran women's cross country team that was among the best programs in the America East – in both running and academics. Emily Mackay had recently graduated as a five-time All-American and Aziza Chigatayeva would earn All-America honors during the 2023 track season. Moreover, the GPA of the entire team was well over a 3.5. It was being a part of that culture that guided Leitner through the uncertain moments of being a college freshman.

"A lot of the upperclassmen influenced my growth and development," she said. "They worked with me as I talked out a lot of the struggles that I faced as a young student-athlete. They helped me mature both as an individual and as an athlete in ways I can't describe. They were role models both on and off the track. I can only aspire to have the same influence on the current underclassmen that they had on me."

As Leitner moved into her sophomore year, she was finding the balance she needed to flourish in all areas of college life. She became well entrenched in the athletic training room – earning the 2024 Orthopedic Associates Scholarship Award - and got involved with SAAC. She also starting earning honors for her academics – including being named to the America East Cross Country All-Academic Team. Instead of being stressed, Leitner had become confident in both her priorities and time management skills.

"I want to be able to excel in all that I'm doing both on and off the track and I have to be able to balance it all if I'm going to be successful," she said. "I keep a rather organized calendar and a bunch of to-do lists around my room, but having those things keeps me on task."

Leitner was part of a conference championship team her sophomore year but the road to a title was challenging for her. She was injured late in the summer and struggled to regain her form during the early season meets.

By the time the 2023 cross country conference meet rolled around that October, however, Leitner was finally where she wanted to be. She placed seventh overall in the conference meet and was one of the key runners in the Bearcats' stunning victory. After not running cross country in high school five years earlier, Leitner was now a major part of a cross country championship team.

"Winning the 2023 cross country team title meant the world to me," Leitner said. "I know I'm not the only one who was shocked that day to see the points come in - even our coaches were asking 'are we sure?' It had never been done before in our program's history. That cross country title was uplifting and surreal, and certainly a day I'll remember for the rest of my life. I'll be telling that story for years to come."

Following the 2023 season, Leitner followed up with strong indoor and outdoor track & field seasons. The Bearcat women's team was the runner up at both conference meets and Leitner capped off the year with another third-place finish in the 10,000.

With the upperclassmen who guided Leitner having since graduated, Leitner is now the captain of the cross country team. She values her chance to be a leader on the team but is equally appreciative of her other roles within the Division of Athletics.

"I love getting to contribute to our athletic department in more ways than running," she said. "Working in the Sports Medicine Department has been a great way to connect with our trainers and meet new people in the athlete community. As someone who has an interest in medicine, it's also been a great way for me to get hands-on-learning experience with a variety of different problems. And SAAC is a great organization that has really helped me understand the behind-the-scenes work that not only Binghamton Athletics does for us, but also the America East Conference."

Although she has already accomplished so much at Binghamton, Leitner has no shortage of goals during her remaining years on campus.

"Boy, is there a list," she said. "My parents joked about how college goes by so fast but realizing I only have two years left is really daunting. I'm excited to continue training and being a consistent contributor to the team. I'd also like to be able to make the time to take part in more general campus activities, before the only ones I get email-invites to are the alumni ones. I didn't do much on campus as a freshman or sophomore, but I'm trying to make a point to do more as a junior and am hoping to continue this trend as a senior next year."

The list of goals, hopes and dreams is just as extensive for Leitner after she graduates from Binghamton.

"Beyond my years at Binghamton, I'm hoping to go to graduate school for my Physician's Assistant degree," she said. "My dream would be to end up at a school in Boston - my times racing there have made me fall in love with the city and I understand they've got some wonderful hospital programs. I'd also like to run a marathon… or two… or however many I can. My mother also runs marathons so I'd be really nice to do her fifth Boston Marathon with her one day. I wouldn't say I'm looking forward to graduating just yet, but there's plenty of fun things I hope for in my post-graduate future."

Not a bad list for someone who – for most of her childhood - never saw herself as an athlete.