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Senior Hanna Keltner sped ahead of over 300 runners to grab first place at the Rim Rock Classic, leading the girls team to a second-place finish Saturday.
Keltner bested 315 runners, finishing first by a whopping 30 seconds, finishing with a time of 19:13.8. Junior Addie Williams finished 44th with a time of 21:59.8.
On the boys side, two freshmen led the Cardinals to a 10th-place finish. Grayson Masterson finished 36th with a time of 17:48.9 and Caleb Reber finished 97th with a time of 18:50.7. Junior Max McLeary finished in just under 19 minutes, good for 106th place out of the 402 runners who ran in the boys blue division.
Keltner has struggled at Rim Rock in the past and said it was a great feeling to finish at the top.
“I’m usually on the finish line, like, crying,” Keltner said. “Today it was very rewarding. Senior year, finally being like, oh my gosh, I can finally say that I defeated Rim Rock.”
Both the girls and guys ran in the middle of the day, grinding through steep Rim Rock hills in the heat.
“It was very hot outside and a lot of the girls were very nervous,” Williams said. “I think it was like a sigh of relief when we got second because we haven’t placed in a long time.”
McLeary said his teammates helped him persevere through the heat and hills. One was right on his tail throughout the race, and he was determined to stay ahead.
“They help push me for sure,” he said. “We all try to pack run most of the time. We push each other hard in practice.”
The team said the race will help prepare them as the season progresses and they look toward the postseason.
“Hopefully it’s not as hot as today,” Williams said. “So hopefully they can have that feeling again where they could let the adrenaline just pump them through the whole race.”
Keltner, who is eyeing a state title this year, said conquering a tough course is good motivation as the season approaches its final month.
“Being able to run a lot better than I did last year is very rewarding, and it helps set myself and the team up for success for the upcoming races,” she said.
