January 17, 2026 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Student athlete of the month Ava Knap

Ava Knap
Grade: 12
Sport: Cross Country
Reason nominated: Knap won the Doc Acklin Invite and was help lead the team to a win.
Nominated by: Jason Retz

What is your favorite class?
My favorite class this year is calculus. Calculus ties everything together and I really like my class.

What are your plans after high school?
I don’t know where I am going yet but I plan on running collegiately and majoring in neuroscience.

What is the best thing about being a student athlete?
We have all the resources to be successful and accomplish our goals. It’s an hour to be apart of such a respectable program and team.

What is the most difficult part of being a student athlete?
To truly access in sports and academics, you have to be disciplined and willing to do things differently than other high schoolers.

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