EHHS senior track star Mallory Boney has committed to College of the Holy Cross, to continue practicing Track and Field at the Division I level. Mallory has been doing track since her middle school years, and has always dreamed about continuing her passion after high school. With continued support from her family, friends, and coaches, Mallory is ready for this next step.
Mallory began the sport in middle school, before taking it more seriously in high school. Once she began doing the sport here at EHHS, she realized that she loved the structure. Mallory knew that she wanted to go D1 for track since middle school, but when she came to high school, it changed the game. She said, “I think I knew [I wanted to go D1] since I started doing it in high school, because middle school is a little more lenient with things. It’s more for fun. And then high school, I realized I definitely wanted to be more serious about it, and definitely wanted to continue doing it for years beyond just the four years of high school.” That shift in mindset helped shape both her athletic goals and her work ethic.
Mallory began track when her father, Michael Boney, introduced her to the sport. Michael was a track star here at EHHS and holds multiple school records. After her father introduced it, Mallory knew that the sport was for her. Mallory said that she began the sport casually, but her love for the sport just grew.
Mallory’s high school track coach, Rusty Dunne, was also her father’s coach when he was at EHHS. Coach Dunne saw Mallory’s skills, but noticed the possibility of competing at the D1 level during her junior year in 2024-2025. During that school year, Mallory became a state champion in Javelin; which is a standard field event where athletes throw the javelin, a long spear, for distance. Mallory is a multi-event athlete. She also competes in hurdles, high jump, and long jump. These are all events where Mallory has to use her skills in different ways.
However, the recruiting process was far from easy. She shared, “It’s definitely stressful, but it has an advantage. With this definitely you figure out your school a lot earlier than the rest of non athletes.” Mallory put a great deal of effort into getting noticed by college coaches. “It looks like reaching out to lots and lots of coaches, emailing, calling, putting yourself out there on recruitment websites, in your emails and literally bothering the coaches. [G]etting yourself out there, getting their attention, and then visiting the schools and seeing things like their facilities and their coaching style to figure out what is your best fit beyond just academics out of school.”
Balancing academics, athletics, and her personal life has been key to her success. As a student in the top 10% of her class, Mallory credits her upbringing and strong time management skills. She shared, “I definitely grew up [learning] how to balance things through my parents; they had experiences with doing sports and handling academics well. But I also value my social life a lot. I’m a very friendly person and love my friends so my social life is very important to me. Being involved with my community is very important to me, as well as my academics and athletics. Like these are all things that I value, so I make sure that I have good time management with those things. And have a spot for each of those in my life.”
Ultimately, her decision to commit to Holy Cross came down to one important factor: feeling wanted. “The biggest thing I tell people is to go where you’re wanted,” Mallory said. “The coaches made me feel comfortable and supported throughout the whole process. That made all the difference.”
As she prepares for this next step, Mallory reflects on her journey with a sense of confidence and excitement. If she could give advice to her younger self, she said it would be simple: “You’re going to end up exactly where you’re supposed to be.”
