Running Rivals Become “Sole Sisters”

From ‘rivals’ to best friends, a friendship started because of one thing…sport.

Texas A&M distance runners Abbey Santoro and Julia Black grew up in Keller, Texas, a town of nearly 50,000 near the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. Santoro attended Keller Middle School and Black went to Indian Springs Middle School, locally known as rivals. The two had never met until their paths crossed at track meets.

“At most meets it was Abbey and I right there next to each other,” Black said. “Both of our schools pitted us against each other. My school friends would ask me if I’m going to beat that girl from Keller this week and everybody at Abbey’s school would ask her if she was going to beat that girl from Indian Springs this week. We had mutual friends and they would say to Abbey, ‘Oh, you can’t believe what Julia said about you.’ Then they would come to me and say ‘Oh, you can’t believe what Abbey said about you.’ It wasn’t until high school when we both realized that we never said any of those things about each other.”

A ‘rivalry’ that was formulated in middle school forced the top runners to soon merge as teammates into the same secondary school, Keller High School. Summer cross country practices began with the Keller Middle School girls mingling with their friends, while the Indian Springs Middle School girls mingled with their group.

It wasn’t until a random invitation, some might say a peace offering, from Black to Santoro to come swimming at her house that the two first spoke to one another… awkwardly. 

“It was Julia and three of her friends,” Santoro said. “We were all going to be on the same cross country team but I didn’t know any of them because they all went to Indian Springs. I was just kind of chilling in the pool off by myself and was like ‘Hi’. After that day our friendship really started.”

With the start of a friendship that brought a clean slate, the duo naturally transitioned from feeling the pressure of competing against one another to finding joy in running with one another. The old saying of iron sharpens iron is as true as can be when it comes to the competitive nature between Black and Santoro. It was at the first race of the sophomore season when they truly realized their level of talent. 

"People come from all over to race in the Marcus I Invitational. They raced in it their freshman year and it was terrifying," said Julia's mother, Lori Black. "Sophomore year they were still little girls but they finished top 10. Afterwards, they were breathing heavy, leaning over and trying to get a drink when Abbey looked at Julia and said 'Julia we beat a lot of the fast girls.' Julia said back 'Abbey I think we are the fast girls now.'”

Later that season, the tandem led their team to a third place finish in the state cross country championships before claiming back-to-back UIL 6A State Championships in 2016 and 2017. After finishing nearly stride for stride in the top 10 individually at consecutive state championships, the pair emerged on the national recruiting scene. 

Black, whose older siblings attended Texas A&M, seemed pre-destined to spend her future in Aggieland, despite promising to keep the recruiting door open. Following an unpleasant unofficial visit, Santoro did not see a future at A&M.

“I had gone on some unofficial visits and I visited Texas A&M during spring break,” Santoro said. “It was a bad idea because there was nobody here and it was extremely hot. I had gotten a recruiting letter and an invite for junior day and I just threw it out in the trash because I had no interest in going to A&M.”

The old saying that goes “secrets don’t make friends” doesn’t always ring true as the best of friends vowed to not tell each other where they were planning to attend college.

“We didn't want to go to the same school just because of each other,” Black said. “We wanted to go to whatever school it would be because we individually on our own wanted to go there.”

Now in their third year in Aggieland, the two seem inseparable as ever in nearly every facet of life. They compete on the same team, have been roommates their whole career, both are majoring in agriculture communications and journalism, and both have boyfriends that are trumpet players in the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band.

On the surface, their differences come to light. Abbey won’t pick out a skirt as the first thing to wear, Julia prefers skirts. Abbey doesn’t like much makeup, while Julia loves makeup. Despite the surface level differences, the friendship is connected on deeper levels.

“They are sisters to the core when it comes to the deep-rooted issues like their faith and morals. I think that is where their hearts connect and I love that about them,” Lori said. “They support each other in all areas. Julia would never try to make Abbey be a certain way and Abbey would never make Julia be a different way. They love the differences in each other, they support those and laugh about those.”

Runners often times pick running groups to find motivation to keep going. Not very often do two runners’ paths come together and continue stride for stride, not just running partners but ‘sole sisters’ through life.