Kayla Montgomery battles MS to excel in track and cross country

For someone who has not even graduated high school yet, future Bison cross country and track and field athlete Kayla Montgomery has already gained more national media attention than many professional athletes will in over the span of an entire career. Montgomery is a senior at Mount Tabor High School in Winston-Salem, N.C who is currently competing in the high school national track championships in New York City alongside hundreds of the best high school track and field athletes from across the country. So what exactly sets her apart from her peers? Montgomery was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis three years ago. Multiple sclerosis, or MS, is a disease that disrupts the way the nervous system communicates with the rest of your body, resulting in numerous symptoms including loss of muscle control and numbness of certain body parts. Montgomery has had a successful running career in high school, despite MS causing her legs to go numb during all of her races to the point that she cannot stand on her own once she crosses the finish line. With her success came interest from colleges across the country, including Lipscomb. However, when other schools were hesitant to offer Montgomery a scholarship because of her disease, Lipscomb was more than willing to add her to the Bison team. “Some of it is that we recruit on character and we recruit on academics. We recruit on a lot of different things; it’s not just athletics” said Bill Taylor, Director of Men’s and Women’s Cross Country and Track and Field at Lipscomb. “She’s a fast runner, but we’re looking for a certain fit for...