Sharing a Dream

David Yon, February 3, 2012

It is one thing to be a star athlete chased by colleges all over the country.  It is another to be the mom of the star athlete who is being chased by those colleges. Sarah Docter-Williams (mom) and Lily Williams (daughter) are both great athletes (actually so is dad) and since her sophomore year at Chiles High School, it has been clear that the top running programs in the country would come calling for Lily.  An Olympic and World Champion speed skater, a college runner at a top program (Wisconsin) and a talented national class cyclist, mom understands how tough athletic pressure and recruiting could be.  More than 70 coaches inquired about Lily’s talents.  And while mom understood the decision belonged to Lily, she never stopped wanting to be sure the decision would be a good one.  And that was a major topic of conversation during many of our 6:00 a.m. Tuesday group track work outs.
Sarah was fond of saying “they are sick of hearing me talk about it.”   But the truth is, it was always us who peppered her with questions on the warm-up runs.  “What is the latest from Washington, Oregon, FSU, Georgetown, Tennessee and Vanderbilt?” to name a few.  The road to Vandy seemed a good story to share as Sarah agreed to the following interview:
I know you have been a competitive (understatement) athlete for most of your life. How has it been watching two daughters compete at such a high level? 
Watching the girls grow and excel at their sports has been wonderful...you get the same adrenaline rush Saturday morning as running yourself with a lot less pain. Their sports have also made parenting so easy as they have grown up surrounded by healthy smart kids and learned so many wonderful lessons from their sport including respecting their environment, their bodies and the world outside Tallahassee. Their sports have also taught them a work ethic beyond compare. These were the lessons I really wanted them to learn - the fact they have become so competitive in their sport has been a super fun bonus!!

What surprised you most about the process?  What worried you the most?
The volatility of college coaching positions was the biggest surprise. They have very little job security and a lot of pressure to perform. Three coaches who started recruiting Lily changed schools midway and then tried to recruit her to their new schools. My greatest worry would be that Lily is unhappy when she gets there. As a mother....you worry about EVERYTHING!!

If there was one major change in the process you could make, what would it be?

My word of advice to parents of high school athletes is to start early in their junior year and have your children narrow choices to 5 schools before their senior year has started. It can really become stressful for your child during the school year. The biggest difficulty to me was schools that wouldn't put their offer on the table upfront so you were not sure if your child was wasting time, emotional energy and application money on a school that was leading you along only to give the money to another athlete.

Is it fun to see your daughter compete so well in a sport you have done so well in?

I am so proud of her and I love to watch her run. I try to deemphasize the pressure from me but I am sure she feels some need to please me by running well. Best of all, I think she truly loves it just like I do!

Anything from your college experience you want to pass on to Lily?

I ran at Wisconsin on a NCAA Champ team as the alternate. This was tough for a really competitive person but a good lesson. I hope Lily can learn to run for the enjoyment and to feel the team spirit and enjoy the ride versus wanting to always win.  She is much better at this then her mom already. She has less ego and sees the big picture.

Luckily, the conversations won’t stop on Tuesday mornings - now instead of asking where Lily is going, we will all be following how she is doing at Vanderbilt.

For the complete interview go here. 

Personal Bests
1600 Meter Run 4:52.05
3200 Meter Run 10:47.82
400 Meter Dash 1:00.31
5000 Meter Run 17:29.05
800 Meter Run 2:16.83
One Mile Run 5:01.50

Athletic Honors
2008 Big Bend Cross Country Honor Roll Weeks 1 - 10
2008 All-Big Bend Cross Country First Team and Athlete of the Year
2009 All-Big Bend Track & Field First Team, 1600m
2009 Chenoweth Female Cross Country Athlete of the Year
2009 Big Bend Cross Country Honor Roll Weeks 1 - 10
2009 All-Big Bend Cross Country First Team
2010 State Champion 1600m and 3200m
2010 Big Bend Cross Country Honor Roll Weeks 1 - 10
2010 All-Big Bend Cross Country First Team and Athlete of the Year
2010 flrunners.com All-State Cross Country First Team
2010 Nike Southeast Region First Team
2011 State Champion 1600m and 3200m
2011 All-Big Bend Track & Field First Team and Athlete of the Year