Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 10, 2026 49 BY TODD D. BURLAGE I f there has ever been a perfect case study in confidence and perseverance, Notre Dame junior Amaya Aramini fits the role perfectly. Dedicated to her academics, her friends, her volunteer work — and of course her distance-running career — this Irish walk-on turned All-American never lets anything stand in the way of achieving her goals. A late arrival to competitive running, the Reno, Nev., native didn't pick up the sport until her sophomore year at Bishop Manogue High School, after she spent all of her formative years as a gifted swimmer. "I didn't like getting into the pool ev- ery day at 5 in the morning anymore," Aramini said with a laugh. "I did not want that kind of grind. I wasn't enjoy- ing myself. I was totally burned out and I needed a change of scenery." So, on the suggestion of her mother, who enjoyed running and occasionally competed in mara- thons, Aramini pursued a new venture. "Mom told me that if I wasn't going to swim, I needed to find something to do," Aramini said. And since her ambition adjust- ment, Amaya hasn't stopped sur- prising fellow competitors, team- mates, her Notre Dame coaches, and even herself. But, before we dive into Aramini's growing list of collegiate achievements, let's first revisit how she arrived at Notre Dame. A gifted student but not neces- sarily a highly coveted runner out of high school, Aramini had to sell herself to colleges based on prom- ise more than proven production if she was even going to be invited to walk on at her prospective schools. "And the rejections were many," she said. "Because rarely are schools recruiting off of potential." Aramini visited Wake Forest, Boston College, Dartmouth and Duke, among others, and finally arrived at and settled on Notre Dame, where she said even the Irish coaches were somewhat skeptical, but invited her in nonetheless. "I never had great success in my high school career at all," Aramini recalled. "So coming in here [to Notre Dame] I knew I was going to be bottom of the pack. And I loved that because I'm somebody that likes to be pushed." After a nondescript start to her run- ning career as an Irish freshman in 2024-25, something clicked for Aramini as a sophomore in 2025-26. In her first season competing in cross country, Aramini earned All-America honors with a 25th-place finish at the 2025 NCAA Cross Country Champion- ships last November. "I think that my improvement sur- prised everybody, including myself," Aramini said. "Rarely do you see a walk- on come into a program and completely transform into an All-American. Was it unexpected? Yes. But in the same sense, I worked for it." When asked if there was one race or moment that flipped the switch on her running career, Aramini referenced the 2025 Nuttycombe Invite cross coun- try race in Madison, Wis., last Octo- ber when Irish head coach Matt Sparks challenged her to finish top 25-50. Instead, Aramini came in eighth indi- vidually to help Notre Dame finish sec- ond in the 30-team event behind peren- nial powerhouse North Carolina State. "I just went for it," Ar- amini said. "I was unafraid to put myself out there and make those bold moves. And I feel like that kind of started the trajectory of my success." B e yo n d r u n n i n g , A r - amini stays balanced and involved with her academ- ics (a strategic manage- ment major), student gov- ernment, hanging out with friends, and her volunteer work with Run Your City South Bend to help intro- duce and keep local youth involved in athletics. Balance and perspective mean everything to Aramini in all of her pursuits, but especially when it comes to competition. "At the end of the day, it's just running. It's just a race, and it's just having fun," she said. "And I always carry that outlook with me." ✦ Irish Roundup CROSS COUNTRY Both teams competed in the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invite Oct. 2 in South Bend … The men placed first out of 18 teams and the women came in second out of 20 teams, behind only No. 1 North Carolina State. MEN'S GOLF Compiled a 1-under-par 839 team score to place third out of 16 schools in the Windon Memorial Classic Sept. 28-29 in Lake Forest, Ill. WOMEN'S GOLF Finished tied for fourth out of 14 schools with a 30-over par team score of 882 in the Fighting Irish Classic Sept. 26-27 on the Warren Golf Course in South Bend. MEN'S SOCCER (5-2-3 OVERALL, 2-1-0 ACC) The No. 13 Irish suffered a 1-0 setback against league foe Syracuse Sept. 25 … Played to a 1-1 draw at UIC Sept. 29. WOMEN'S SOCCER (4-0-6 OVERALL, 2-0-1 ACC) The No. 12 Irish put their undefeated record on the line at No. 1 North Carolina Oct. 2. VOLLEYBALL (4-8 OVERALL, 1-2 ACC) Began ACC play with a 3-1 loss at Boston College Sept. 25 … Bounced back with a 3-0 triumph at Syracuse Sept. 27 … Dropped the first of two consecutive matches with No. 4 Louisville 3-0 Sept. 30 in Louisville, Ky. … Hosted the Cardinals at Purcell Pavilion Oct. 3. Distance Ace Amaya Aramini Is Surprising Everybody N O T R E D A M E S P O R T S Aramini earned All-America honors with a 25th- place finish at the 2025 NCAA Cross Country Championships last November. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS