For a time, Gabriella McDonald’s days were nonstop. From arriving on campus at 6 am for morning weights with the women’s soccer team to attending a full day of business classes and going to track practice in the evening, McDonald was busy. That was life for a two-sport athlete.
Growing up as a Fort Collins native and daughter of CSU alum parents, McDonald’s life revolved around Colorado State. “My parents met at CSU, my grandfather was a professor, my aunts and uncles went here and my brother met his wife at CSU,” she said. “Everybody in my family bleeds green and gold.”
Given her family’s connection, attending CSU felt like a natural fit for McDonald, but she couldn’t have anticipated where she’d eventually end up.
Connection turned opportunity
In high school, most people participate in a sport or two, but McDonald played three. When she wasn’t playing goalkeeper on a club or school soccer team, you’d find her on the basketball court. Once the basketball season ended, she was throwing shot put and discus. Her love of and dedication to sports was evident to anyone who knew her.
Playing for her high school’s soccer team and the Fort Collins club team, McDonald considered soccer her main sport. Wanting to follow in her brother’s footsteps as a shot put and discus thrower, she joined the track team but only ever considered it a side hobby.
Then McDonald got good. Five state titles kind of good. It was apparent she wasn’t merely a soccer player but a successful multi-sport athlete. While recruitment for college soccer began earlier in high school, track recruitment didn’t start till her junior and senior year. At that point, McDonald already received an offer to play soccer at CSU, but a connection from her soccer team created another possibility.
CSU’s head track coach, Brian Bedard, was the father of one of McDonald’s soccer teammates. Through the grapevine, he’d heard about her success as a thrower. While she’d already committed to playing soccer, Bedard knew that she was also doing well in track and offered her the option to do both.
“That’s what made me really want to go to CSU,” McDonald said. “It was a unique opportunity, and I didn’t think I was going to get anybody else to offer that.”
Finding her footing at CSU
When McDonald arrived at the College of Business, the busy schedule began. For three years, she balanced the life of a two-sport athlete and a full-time business student. Soccer season ran late summer through fall, and track started in winter and ended early summer, so her commitment to sports was year-round.
“I don’t think there was a lot of work-life balance going on,” McDonald said. “I was burning the candle at both ends.”
Then COVID hit, upending every aspect of normal life. College sports were no exception. On top of the stress of the pandemic, CSU’s women’s soccer program underwent significant changes with a coaching turnover to Keely Hagen. McDonald’s two-sport deal worked under CSU’s previous coach, but Hagen had different standards for athletes playing two sports.
McDonald decided it was time to shift her focus to one sport: track.
While she’d been a part of the team since her redshirt freshman year, a full reconstructive knee surgery and a pandemic meant that she’d never officially competed. It wasn’t until the following year, McDonald’s fourth year in school, that’d she’d officially start.
“I started the following year as a senior at the College of Business and a freshman in track,” she said.
A fresh start
For the first time, McDonald could solely focus on one sport. Stepping away from soccer also gave her time to focus on school.
Initially, McDonald only planned to major in computer information systems, but with the change in her athletic schedule, she realized she could do more. Having finished all her business courses with multiple years of athletic eligibility remaining, McDonald looked toward a double major.
Choosing to double major in computer science was a no brainer for McDonald with her background in CIS. Once she finishes her undergraduate courses, she hopes to pursue her Master in Computer Information Systems at the College.
“I think it worked out for the best that I’m just doing track,” she said. “I have more time to focus on getting a master’s and have a better work-life balance.”
Setting records
Throwing the 10th-best shot put in school history at one of her first indoor meets, McDonald proved she was an invaluable member of the team. From there, she continued to succeed, improving her personal stats with every season. Eventually, she took herself from the 10th-best shot put in CSU history to holding the school’s record for indoor shot put (57 feet, 7 inches).
But success didn’t come without its ups and downs. At the NCAA championship meet in 2022, McDonald experienced what she describes as “the disaster” meet.
“At the NCAA first round meet last year, I was having an identity crisis. It took a lot to believe in myself as a track athlete and not just as a soccer player who also did track,” she said. “Dropping soccer made me lose a lot of confidence and led me to feel very out of place on the track.”
Despite her high ranking going into the meet, McDonald’s lack of confidence caught up with her. She fouled five out of six total throws, making it one of the worst meets of her career. Ultimately, McDonald embraced the failure and used it to push herself forward.
“It took months afterwards to get myself into the right mindset,” she said. “That is, until the conference meet in 2023, where I decided to stop waiting for someone else to tell me I could do this, and to believe in myself. I threw the school record in shot put at that meet and qualified for my first ever nationals to become an All-American. It was the best athletic day in my life in any sport.”
After a widely successful spring season, her tactic paid off. On top of helping CSU win the indoor and outdoor Mountain West Championships, McDonald received the 2023 Most Outstanding Performer of the Meet award for her first-place performance in the discus and shot put.
This performance qualified her for the U.S. Championships. On a non-Olympic year, the meet qualifies athletes for the World Championships. She joined two teammates at the national meet in July.
A few weeks before the championships, McDonald suffered a back injury. Despite her uncertainty about attending, she pushed through and competed. Her performance didn’t go as expected, but she’s excited to keep pushing to get better. “I didn’t do well, but it was a good experience getting to know what it’s like to be there,” she said.
Next season, she hopes to set CSU’s outdoor record for shot put. Not too bad for a soccer player.
About CSU’s College of Business
The College of Business at Colorado State University is focused on using business to create a better world.
As an AACSB-accredited business school, the College is among the top five percent of business colleges worldwide, providing programs and career support services to more than 2,500 undergraduate and 1,300 graduate students. Faculty help students across our top-ranked on-campus and online programs develop the knowledge, skills and values to navigate a rapidly evolving business world and address global challenges with sustainable business solutions. Our students are known for their creativity, work ethic and resilience—resulting in an undergraduate job offer and placement rate of over 90% within 90 days of graduation.
The College’s highly ranked programs include its Online MBA, which has been ranked the No. 1 program in Colorado by U.S. News and World Report for six years running and achieved No. 16 for employability worldwide from QS Quacquarelli Symonds. The College’s Impact MBA is also ranked by Corporate Knights as a Top 20 “Better World MBA” worldwide.
