Clearing hurdles

The St. Augustine Catholic High School junior instead aimed to run in the state track meet.

The hurdler acted as manager in St. Augustine's first track meet this season because she has lupus. Coach Al Buhl encouraged Crusa to do likewise for the second meet, but Crusa had other plans.

"I never thought about giving up sports — it wasn't an option," she said.

For the March 10 meet at the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind, Crusa showed up before Buhl arrived at St. Augustine and convinced athletic director Cal Montgomery to fork over a uniform. When the coach arrived to collect his team in the afternoon, he found Crusa suited up.

She finished ahead of runners from schools like Academy of Tucson and Ajo High School in the 100- and 300-meter hurdles, and has since won events for the 1A school against runners from 4A and 5A schools. She has qualified for this weekend's state meet.

"She's the kind of kid that's going to keep on going no matter what," said mom Cindy Phillips.

The 16-year-old also competes in volleyball and basketball.

"I'm not surprised; I'm amazed," Buhl said.

As a hurdler, Crusa has run personal bests of 17.2 seconds in the 100 hurdles and 50 seconds in the 300 hurdles.

Her love for running led her to swap softball for track this spring after St. Augustine added the sport this season. An appetite for challenges attracted her to hurdles.

Crusa was diagnosed with lupus in 2003. She could once run for hours and now takes breaks. Rainy or cold weather makes Crusa's joints ache.

"I have my good days and bad days," she said.

During a softball game her freshman year, Crusa was on third base looking to score when a teammate got a hit. After stepping on home plate, Crusa wandered back to the dugout and collapsed.

She has learned to listen to her body. The morning before a meet, she has a good breakfast, takes her pills and attempts to distance herself from any energy-consuming stress.

"Everybody's just a runner out there," said St. Augustine sophomore Sam Diggins.

At first, Crusa wrote off her fatigue as lazy-teenager-syndrome in the sweaty summer days of 2003. A rash on her forehead was discarded as a sunburn.

When the rash failed to fade, a checkup with a doctor led to the diagnosis of two types of lupus: discoid, which affects the skin, and systemic, which affects organs, joints and body systems.

Crusa said she didn't really feel much initial change living with lupus, until doctors' appointments for physical therapy and blood drawing became the norm.

"That's kind of when it hit me," she said. No one else in Crusa's family has the disease.

Crusa plans to attend college, possibly to study medicine, and try to compete at the collegiate level.

Her coach has learned not to question her intentions.

"The sky's the limit for her," he said.

Lupus facts

● Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks normal tissue and organs, including joints, kidneys, the heart, lungs, brain, blood and skin.

● Cause is unknown.

● There are several types of lupus. Sandy Crusa has both discoid, which affects the skin and is identified by a rash, and systemic, which can target the skin, joints and almost any organ or system of the body. About 70 percent of lupus cases are systemic.

● Symptoms include achy or swollen joints, persistent fever over 100 degrees, extreme fatigue, skin rashes, chest pain, hair loss, abnormal blood clotting, seizures and mouth or nose ulcers.

● Lupus can strike at any age, and in either sex, though 90 percent are women.

Source: Lupus Foundation of America, Inc. For more information on lupus, visit lupus.org.