A Westchester eighth grader is one step away from representing the United States in this year's Summer Olympics.

Alexa Reyna, 14 from White Plains, has come a long way from her first swim six years ago. Her two older sisters inspired her to dive into the sport.

"I wanted to be like her so I started swimming. All three of us started swimming," says Reyna.

With an Olympic spot on the line, she took the block in a grueling race -- 16 minutes long, 30 laps in total, equating to a mile in the pool. She made the cut-off time.

Carle Fierro, her coach since she was eight years old, was overcome by the moment.

"She gets to the wall and you know, I just dropped to my knees and I thank God ... because he gave me the gift to help this child, who it means so much to her get her goal," says Fierro.

Her mom Stephanie was watching too, and couldn't be prouder.

"Everything comes into your mind and for her just to be happy and you know, after all of that, hard work that pays off. I mean that was pretty amazing," says Stephanie Reyna.

Trials take place in Omaha, Nebraska in late June with a spot to represent the U.S. in Tokyo later this summer.