Estero senior Megan Giovanniello has made the decision to commit to Florida Atlantic University.

Megan Giovanniello took the next step in her athletic career when she verbally committed to run for Florida Atlantic University Tuesday. Estero High School’s Twitter sent out a Tweet the following day  to congratulate Megan on her accomplishment.

Megan has been competing for Estero since her sophomore year after having transferred from Ida S. Baker High School mid-way through her freshman year. Megan's transfer from Baker to Esteromeant she wasn't able to compete at all during 2014 after being put on a one-year restriction due to the time of her transfer (this rule will be no longer be in effect starting during the 2017-18 school year, essentially allowing athletes ‘free agency,’ to still compete regardless of the time of year). Megan appeared back on the radar in 2015, and since then, has shaped up to be an incredible talent to watch, having had the opportunity to run alongside Estero runners like Daley Cline (graduated in 2016) and a string of fellow Wildcats.

Having qualified in the 1600 along with her 4x800 relay, Megan walked away from the 2015 outdoor season a state champion (3A girls 4x800, 9:15), and carried that momentum into the fall cross country season, where she finished 32nd at the state meet in a personal-best of 19:44.1.

The girls of Estero: Daley Cline,  Breeana Salcedo, Megan Giovanniello (far right), and Megan Slater  celebrating after winning the 3A 4x800 relay state title in 2015.

She also boasts a personal-best of 2:18 in the 800 and 5:08 in the 1600.

So far this season, she’s matched her time from last year, only missing the exact time by .7 at the FSU Pre-State Invitational last week. Ironically, it was on the same course, as Apalachee Regional Park is where Florida hosts the cross country state meet.

“I chose FAU mainly because that's where I felt I should be deep down inside,” Megan told DyeStat Florida. She said that it was the head coach FAU, Smolka, who helped influence her choice to commit; not because he persuaded her, but it was because Smolka reminded her greatly of the late coach Jeff Sommer of Estero High School, who she was very close to.

“I just knew with his coaching ability and knowledge of the sport, that I could find that same love for running I once had with coach Sommer as my coach,” she said.

Before making the final decision, it was a battle between Florida Southern University and FAU. Both schools had similar aspects as far as education and team ability, but again, the personality of Smolka won her over. She also  looked into FSU for some time, as it was actually where she initially wanted to go since some former teammates were attending. However, realizing that the amount of pressure being over at FSU might’ve been too much for her, she mainly stuck with the two and chose the one.

Before she knows it, senior year will almost at its conclusion, though there’s still plenty of time to get things done.

Megan looks back at her career and said that the most important lesson for her was not giving up on herself. Dealing with a first few disappointing races, she learned to keep on keepin’ on.

“If it weren't for him, I would not be the runner I am today, and I owe everything to him.”

Before graduating, Megan aspires to break the five-minute barrier in the 1600, as well as break her 800 school record of 2:15. And if she doesn’t reach her goals, she’ll be alright, as her only regret looking back is not starting high school at Estero. She said that if she would've started high school there she would've had more time to be coached by Sommer.

Megan said she’s extremely excited to be on the path of starting something new.

“High school was such a great experience filled with unbreakable friendships and long lasting memories, I can't wait to really begin the first chapters of my life being an Owl. I'm looking forward to meeting new people, and starting a new training program!”

SEE THE LIST - CLASS OF 2017 COLLEGE COMMITTMENTS