McIntosh Finding Her Groove Again At Clemson 

A year after heart surgery, former prep star running better than ever as a freshman

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

Kamryn McIntosh could barely stand not being able to run.

A year ago at this time, McIntosh was a senior at Suffern High in New York and recovering from heart surgery.

As one of the top prep middle distance runners in the nation, and a former high school national record holder in the indoor 600 meters, McIntosh was diagnosed with anomalous aortic origin of her right coronary artery (AAOCA).

It’s a rare condition in which both of the coronary arteries arise from the same aortic sinus. It is also the second-leading cause of sudden cardiac death among American children and adolescents. 

“It was driving me crazy,” McIntosh said of not being able to run. “Runners kind of get addicted to running.” 

McIntosh had to put her sport on hold for nearly seven months as she recovered, got healthy and prepared for the transition from high school to college. But the time off seems to have paid off for the Clemson University freshman.  

McIntosh is coming off a phenomenal indoor season when she clocked a top-10 NCAA time in the 800 (2:03.59), finished second at the ACC Championships and 11th at the NCAA Division 1 Championships.

McIntosh's addiction to running has resumed. 

“After my first indoor race, I guess you could say I was on cloud nine,” McIntosh said. “I was really happy to be running. Getting back to running, running those times in high school, I finally get that adrenaline back, and drive to keep building and running faster.” 

Back On Track

McIntosh's diagnosis of AAOCA was discovered in January 2017. After experiencing extreme fatigue following races and workouts for quite some time, McIntosh went to her doctor and then a cardiologist, who pinpointed the problem. 

Surgery happened in February, followed by months of recovery. McIntosh missed almost all of the 2017 outdoor season, yet made it back May 25 for the Section 1 Class A Championships, where she anchored Suffern’s 4x400 relay to a first-place finish. 

“We’ve had so many surprises with her along the way that nothing (surprises me) anymore,” Suffern High coach Jeff Dempsey said. “When she came back in spring of her senior year, part of the rehab and the goal was to get back and race, and for no other reason than just to get over that hurdle. She stepped out onto the track for the first time and she ran 57 seconds and the whole place goes, ‘Are you freaking kidding me?’”

McIntosh didn’t race again until she arrived at Clemson, where she built up her speed and stamina again and prepared for a much bigger stage. Tigers head coach Mark Elliott said he was careful not to place any immediate expectations on McIntosh.

In December, McIntosh her collegiate debut and competed unattached. She described it as “a great feeling.” With an emphasis on the 800 and relays, McIntosh was able to get a strong sense of herself as a runner and person.  

“I definitely think I’m a stronger runner,” she said. “Sometimes being a runner is especially mental. Going to practice every single day, going through the sweat, tears and pain and everything …. I think going through the surgery and coming back and slowly learning how to run again, I found another love for running and it definitely made me a better runner now.”

Staying Positive 

This isn’t the first comeback for McIntosh. Back in high school she missed a majority of her junior year with a tumor in her knee. Through it all, she’s maintained a healthy and mature outlook. 

“I think, in general, I’m kind of a positive person,” McIntosh said. “Going into surgery people thought it was strange how not exactly OK I was with it, but kind of (let it) happen. I just had to move on and find success out of it.”

Added Dempsey: “I was shocked with how well she handled it. It almost scared me. She handled (the surgery) really well. She knew it was something she needed, another hurdle she was going to have to get over. But I think she was always pretty confident she was going to be able to come back.”

Success has come for the freshman, but it’s been learning process. McIntosh said this past indoor season she had to learn how to believe in herself once again and trust she could get back to the times she once produced as one of the premier prep stars in the Class of 2017.

At the ACC Championships, it was Elliott who told her she had the ability to run 2:03. The last time she ran that fast was on a split in high school. 

“I knew she was a very good athlete,” Elliott said. “I could tell from experience in coaching. I knew what she was capable of doing, and based off what she does in practice. It wasn’t surprising to me when she ran the time. The approach I took with Kam was, ‘Let’s just go out and try and run, and run at the best you can, run the way you feel, and see where it takes us.’”

More To Come

McIntosh believes her best days on the track are yet to come. After 2:03, she knows there’s more. She transitioned smoothly into the outdoor season, running a 3:27.37 split on the 1,200-meter leg of Clemson’s winning DMR at the Texas Relays and also recently winning the 800 (2:06.13) at the Crimson Tide Invitational.  

“She’s a competitor,” Elliott said. “It takes a special person to be able to push themselves with that (medical history) in the back of their mind and continue to get better and better each day. She is a unique person, and it’s not an understatement on my part.”

She’s also adamant about using her platform to share her story and make others aware of what she went through. 

“She really wears it like a badge,” Dempsey said. “She wasn’t even out of the hospital and it was always, ‘How can we tell other teams about this? How can we get others checked (for AAOCA)? How can we make this known? And it was really remarkable.’

“I (always said), ‘Worry about you first before you worry about everybody else.’ But that’s always been her nature.”