Follow North Yarmouth Academy senior Hannah Austin during her senior xc season. Austin was the Class C state xc runner-up a year ago, and returns as the individual favorite to win the Class C title this fall. While she is small in stature she certainly makes up for with her grit & determination on the course.
Hi everyone!
It’s so exciting to think that now that preseason is drawing to a close, the cross country season is truly beginning! Now many of you have already competed in your first races! I love looking at all the results from the meets that have happened all across the state, and even throughout the nation! Many people have already run some amazing races, and it’s only the beginning of the season!
This past weekend, my team and I competed in our first meet of this season, the Lake Region Invitational. I have gone to this race ever since freshman year and it is a fun way to kick off the season, not only because of the actual race, but also because there is an amazing custard place that we always stop at afterwards! The meet also has a great atmosphere. Around 8 teams participate, some of whom I don’t really see during the rest of the season, and the top 25 finishers are awarded with medals, while the top team gets a plaque. The course itself is lots of loops around different fields, along with a small portion in the woods. In total, the course is about 2.8 miles. The race ends on Lake Region’s track. Though sometimes the field loops can get a little tiring, it’s great for the spectators, who line up all along the field to cheer on the runners! I felt okay about my first race of the season, though there are definitely some things I know I need to work on for next time. However, this race was a very exciting opener for our team as a whole. First of all, Matt Malcom from our boys’ team and I both set new course records, which we were both really happy about. Equally exciting however, was that the four other girls from my team who were able to come all ran amazing races! Everyone ran the times they wanted to or better, which was amazing, especially considering this was only our first meet of the season. For a couple of the girls, this was their first cross country race ever! We also placed fourth in the team scoring out of 8 teams, which I’d say is pretty good considering we only had 5 people there! I can’t wait to see what the team will be able to do as the season goes on! This meet was also really great because I got to see some fellow runners from other teams who I hadn’t seen for a long time, and I got to meet runners I’d never talked to before. I can’t wait to see everyone at future meets!
Cross country racing starting also means that school is starting as well. As I’m writing this, I am enjoying my last night of summer vacation. I am definitely sad about this, and know that it will be hard at first to get back into the routine of school and homework. However, I am excited for the start of my senior year, where I’ll be able to see my friends every day again, take some fun classes, think more about my college plans for next year, and enjoy the bagels my school provides every morning for our break, which are really good!
I hope all of you who have already raced are pleased with how you are starting out your season; I can’t wait to see how well everyone continues to do this season!
Hannah