Her hands tighten on the wheel as she shifts her right foot onto the right pedal. Her heartbeat quickens as she waits for the starting pistol to be fired. As the light changes to green, her focus is solely on the road ahead of her, as she controls the movements of her vehicle. She tries to keep her breathing under control as she runs down the path, her feet hitting the ground and pushing her past the competitors. 

Running and driving are just two hobbies of Revere High School junior Megan Diulus, and in each of them, she finds a sense of passion and calm. 

Diulus runs on the cross country team and the track team, but outside of athletics, she enjoys art and reading to give her balance between her alone time and busy life. 

The cross country season recently ended and Diulus enjoyed the season along with the results of her individual time and team time. 

“We got fifth place [at States]. Last year we got 12th, so it’s definitely a big move up from our training. It’s been really great to get us to that place. It was a great opportunity to show how we can compete [with other teams],” Diulus said.

To train for cross country and track, in addition to practices, Diulus runs on her own time when she’s not busy with school. 

“I train on my own. I’m not part of any outside running clubs. I don’t do any other sports other than running,” Diulus said.

Before running became her only sport, Diulus participated in taekwondo. She did taekwondo before the outbreak of COVID. After she stopped taekwondo, she found that she excelled in running and decided to continue doing it. She practiced taekwondo for four or five years before running and explained what she liked about it. 

“I loved the community there, the people were just great,” Diulus said. 

Soon she found another community in the running scene at Revere High School. She became very close friends with junior Ally Meixner through her cross country season in freshman year. 

“We weren’t really friends [in eighth grade]. We’d talk if there was no one else to talk to. [During] freshman year cross country season, we started to get really close and then after that, she’s been my best friend,” Diulus said. 

Meixner and Diulus have a shared passion for running all year long in cross country and track. To think, if Diulus had not started running during freshman year, she would not have met and became best friends with Meixner. The friendship of the two was not the only thing that Diulus brought to cross country but also her competitive spirit. Meixner says Diulus’ passion and motivation comes from the miles running spent with her dad. 

“Over summer [after freshman year,] she put in so many miles with her dad, and I think he really motivated her to keep going and just like competing with our teammates. She just has such a competitive spirit and loves to win,” Meixner said. 

In the time of being best friends with Diulus, Meixner has learned about perseverance and the competitiveness that keeps her going in her own life. 

“I feel like I learn from [Diulus] to be more dedicated because of how much work she puts into things, and it pays off,” Meixner said. 

In addition to winning by placing high in running events, Diulus has won a couple awards for her art abilities in the Revere Art Show. While her schedule has become too busy for art classes this year, she still has the desire to draw and replicate what she sees.

“I like pictures. I like to see a picture and draw it because . . . I’m just able to replicate something,” Diulus said. 

Not only do her talents in art and drawing help her win awards, they also help to calm her during her busy schedule. Diulus heavily emphasized the importance of quality time she gets to spend alone. She takes advantage of this time whenever she is driving, drawing or reading; some of her hobbies. 

“My house is filled with people. My great-aunt lives with me. It’s not just people, but also three dogs, so it’s super chaotic. My brother always has friends over, so sometimes it’s just nice to be alone,” Diulus said. 

While she prioritizes her alone time, she also likes spending time with her friends. She likes to thrift with them when she has time in her busy schedule. She takes multiple honors and AP classes, while balancing her hobbies and school sports. Hailey Hicks, a junior at Revere, shares many classes with Diulus and ultimately made friends with her through those classes. 

“We have honors precalculus and AP Language together this year. We had Spanish together last year, which is where we got really close,” Hicks said. 

The two talked to each other in that Spanish class when everyone else was quiet before the class started. Hicks described Diulus’ personality.

“She’s very outgoing, funny and intelligent. She’s also very kind,” Hicks said. 

Hicks explained that because of Diulus’ personality, she is inspired to be more outgoing in her own life. Hicks also explained the motivations that Diulus has and how it helps her progress in life. 

“I think part of her motivation is because she’s such a passionate person and she is a competitive person. She sets good goals for herself that she knows she can reach so she’s more motivated to accomplish them,” Hicks said. 

Hicks detailed that her goals are in her running times and also when she looks at colleges she wishes to go to. Diulus likes science and is taking advanced science classes so she can possibly major in something related to that. While Diulus is not fully decided yet about her future in college, the thought of running in college has crossed her mind. She does not let herself lose sleep over academics or her busy schedule though. She takes breaks when she has time because she knows it’s important to her overall health. 

“If I’m up late and I have to study a little bit more, then I study more, but if it’s midnight, I’ll go to sleep because I know it’s good for my mental health, my physical health and my running,” Diulus said. 

These breaks contribute to each track meet or cross country invitational she goes to. Running in a race requires that with a steady pace, you are able to control your mentality. Diulus, who has been running since freshman year, understands her limits, but still is motivated to meet her goals. She inspires her friends and teammates to be as dedicated to the pursuits in their lives and uplifts them everyday.