If you didn't know better, you might think it's possible that Catarina Rocha runs as fast as she does because if she went any slower, she might not have time to fit all her activities into a single day.
Most recently, Rocha broke the All-State meet record in the indoor mile with a time of 4:49.14, believed to be the fastest mile ever run in an MIAA indoor meet. It was the sixth All-State title of her high school career; she's also won seven EMass Divison 1 championships.
Rocha's favorite accolade, however, is the team championship she helped Peabody's girls cross country team claim this past fall. Seeing her teammates succeed is as important to her as any individual medal.
Away from the track, Rocha has served as class secretary for all four years. She's a member of the National Honor Society, heading up the NHS' peer tutoring group, and ranks 45th in Peabody High's senior class of 472 students.
Rocha also works with special needs youngsters as part of the city's challenger program. Her favorite class in school is TV production, and she's used that experience to produce anti-drug public service announcements as part of the school's Health Advisory Council.
"Catarina's accomplishments are amazing; however, they tend to overshadow the special character she possesses," PHS principal Ed Sapienza wrote. "She is valued by adults, students, friends and teammates because of who she is, not what she does."
An 8-time Salem News Runner of the Year in various seasons of track, Rocha is a 2-time All-American in cross country, where she followed in both her mother and father's footsteps by running at Foot Locker XC Nationals. She finished second as a senior and won the Foot Locker Northeast Regional race, and broke Olympian Shalane Flanagan's course record at Franklin Park.
Her father and coach, Joe Rocha, was most proud when she returned to the course after a cross country race in the fall.
"One of the boys from the opposing team and his family were concerned about his being able to complete the race because he was autistic and unsure of the course layout," he said. "She took it upon herself to ask if she could serve as his guide during the race, and both athletes finished the race with grins on their faces."
