SPRINGDALE -- Sheridan Ellis wasn't too disappointed after she finished 185th in a large cross country meet in Dallas last Saturday.
Ellis is just thrilled to be competing for Springdale Har-Ber and running again without pain or concern. Running pain-free wasn't possible when she was in eighth and ninth grade at Central Junior High in Springdale.
Profile
Sheridan Ellis
School: Springdale Har-Ber
Height: 5-2
Notable: Ran a personal-best 20:56 at Class 7A state meet last year as a sophomore…. Ran 22:42 in Har-Ber’s first meet in Dallas… Runs track in the spring and is a member of the Har-Ber debate team.
Ellis (5-foot-2) has hyper-mobility, where her joints move around too much and stretch farther than normal. For example, her hip would dislocate on occasion while she was running. She also suffers from hematologic migraines, which is a rare type of headache that led to tingling and numbness on the left side of her body. The pain can become excruciating, like being stuck with pins or needles.
Ellis was in physical therapy for two years because of her hyper-mobility and she takes anti-seizure medication to help control the numbness from migraines. She competed as a sophomore for the Wildcats and is back mostly pain free for the start of her junior season.
Ellis ran a 22:42 at the Southlake (Texas) Carroll Invitational, when the Har-Ber boys finished 20th and the girls placed 39th.
"Sheridan is a great kid who's worked her butt off and has always kept a positive attitude," said Har-Ber coach Brett Unger, whose known Ellis since she was in the sixth grade. "She loves running and she knows what it's like to have that gift stripped from her."
Ellis admitted to some tough times during therapy or going through the day without being overwhelmed with pain.
"At one time, it did cross my mind that I may never be able to run again," Ellis said of her ordeal. "That hurt to think that I might not be able to do what I love and to be on a team again."
Ellis said her troubles surfaced halfway through eighth grade and into her ninth-grade year, when the migraine headaches began. She did not run cross country in ninth grade but she improved enough to compete in track later that spring.
"My mom, Kristin, really stuck by me through this whole thing," Ellis said. "She knew without asking that I wanted to run again. With her, it was 'if this doctor doesn't know, we'll find another one'. She was there for me even more than she probably realizes."
Ellis is a top student who is on the debate team at Har-Ber. She enjoys studying history, which is not surprising considering she was named after a famous Civil War general.
That's Phillip Sheridan, who Ellis said is her great-great-great grandfather. Sheridan was a Union general who helped force the surrender of Robert E. Lee that ended the Civil War.
"I've been to Shiloh National Cemetery in Tennessee and I've been to Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., where (Sheridan) is buried," Ellis said. "To me, it's just so interesting with all the history that's involved."
Ellis said she'd like to attend college, possibly at the University of Michigan, and eventually write screen plays for movies. But for now, she is content with the simple act of running again and competing with her teammates at Har-Ber.
"Sheridan is very valuable to our team," Unger said. "She's one of our two captains and that speaks volumes about what the other kids think of her."
Sports on 09/11/2014