Rejoice Christian’s Luke Shaffer
Luke Shaffer is a junior at Rejoice Christian where he competes in track and field for the Eagles. Head coach Brandon A. Johnson said Shaffer is a coachable athlete who works hard in everything he does for the team.
“Luke is an incredibly hard worker, never looks for the easy path and wants to be pushed. He finished 3rd at State in the 400 last year as a sophomore. He also is a huge contributor on our sprint relay teams including anchoring the 4×400,” said coach Johnson.
Shaffer started competing in track at age 13. Since then, he has continued to work to improve his times and technique.
“One of my biggest strengths in my set of skills is my calm demeanor and one of the things I have improved on the most this season was my relationship with my teammates,” Shaffer said. “Having unity with them helped tremendously. One of the things that I love about my teammates is how encouraging and supportive they are.”
For anyone in high school, there are plenty of challenges, but for Shaffer he has found a way to make it all work.
“One of the biggest challenges that I have faced with being a high school athlete is keeping up with everything just with school and all the practices,” Shaffer said. “Rejoice for a student-athletes is great, the coaches are great, and everyone routes for you.”
To mentally prepare for competition, Shaffer said he leans on his preparation and knowing the hard work has been put in to execute and be successful.
“I mentally prepare myself in confidence knowing that I have prepared myself for what is to come and now I just have to go out and do what I came to do,” said Shaffer.
Also a state champion in football, Shaffer is trying to leave a positive legacy at Rejoice Christian for younger athletes to follow.
