Ericka is the muse for Inspired 2 Race Sports Management.  Ericka’s heartening story of an excellent high school running career, that turned into a disappointing college career, and how she overcame that to reveal a very inspirational post-collegiate future ahead!

Ericka is a middle-distance runner, specializing in the 800m.  She graduated from the College of Health and Human Performance at East Carolina University in 2011 with a BS in Sports Studies (minor in Communication Studies). 

Unfortunately, things did not work out well for Ericka in college as she grew more and more discouraged with each performance. For four years, Ericka confesses, “I came in determined, but left the season feeling humiliated and upset with myself”.

At ECU is where she fell in love with biomechanics and the physiology of exercise; everything about the body’s movement and the different muscle groups. To keep her six-pack shredded, believe it or not, she does 1000 crunches a night (religiously).

In 2016, Ericka switched coaches and began training with well-renowned Coach George “Pup” Williams and joined his team of Elites and the G.W. Express Track Club in Raleigh, NC. This change provided Ericka the opportunity to train with some of the best world-class track and field athletes

Ericka is the niece of former NC State basketball standout, the late-Lorenzo Charles (2011).  Lorenzo is well-remembered for his quick thinking, split-second decision that granted NC State the win over Houston in the 1983 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship (1983: NC State’s last-second win over Houston, 2013).

Ericka recently became very public about what it is like to live with adult autism.  Autism is a spectrum disorder.  Autism is not singular but is comprised of many different things.  Autism refers to a broad range of cognitive conditions categorized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication (What is Autism, 2019).  Autism is different in each individual and is either undiagnosed, under-diagnosed, or non-disclosed.  This admission alone makes Ericka incredibly courageous.

Ericka currently has her sights set on competing in the 2022 Indoor & Outdoor National Championships