Hanna Keltner was built by those who came before her.
It started with her mother, who first sparked her interest in running. Then it was her coaches and teammates, who pushed and shaped her into the runner she is today.
This season, the senior is embracing a new mindset.
One year removed from a second-place finish at state, her senior-season goals are adorned on a pink paper in her bedroom, with one mantra tying them all together: This is your year.
“She could run forever”
Keltner saw her family running from a young age. Both her mother and older sister were runners. She remembers seeing her mom waking up in the morning to go run 10 miles, and thought few things sounded more miserable.
But slowly, she caught on. In elementary school, she joined the marathon club and the competition fueled her. By middle school, she had fallen in love.
Her mom, Jody Keltner, said she was thankful for the marathon club. She remembers watching her daughter run, always pushing to be allowed one more lap.
“She took it to a different level than I ever had,” she said. “She could run forever.”
Keltner’s dream of becoming a soccer player was slowly being replaced by her love of running. When she got to high school, she started to realize just how far her energy and hard work could take her.
“It’s always been something, like, when I’ve had a rough day, I can just always go out and run,” Keltner said. “And I know I can rely on that to kind of put me in a better mood.”
For her first few years, she carefully watched the leaders who came before her, like Mackenzie Mayer, Phoebe Fletcher and Sydney Owens, soaking up their wisdom and leadership.
They set the bar high, but Keltner only raised it.
Owens graduated last year after winning the individual state title ahead of Keltner. She said Keltner is a hard worker who focuses on the little things.
“She’s very disciplined and determined,” Owens said. “Hanna is also a very supportive teammate and is always there to cheer everyone on. Whether it’s a meet or practice, she’ll be there for her team.”
From the moment she took her first step as a Cardinal, Keltner was making an impact. She finished second at state her freshman year, leading Eudora to a team state title. The team repeated that feat in Keltner’s sophomore and junior years, where she finished top three at state.
Already with a decorated career, Keltner said she isn’t finished yet — she’s still eyeing the top spot.
But it won’t be easy. Head coach Jim Barnard said there are always runners improving over the summer, vying to claim the top spot in the fall. And talented freshmen, like Keltner once was, can pop up seemingly out of nowhere to compete for the title.
So, Keltner keeps training. She runs 30-40 miles every week and leads the team through core strength workouts. Most importantly, she is rigid about her sleep schedule, ducking out of football games early to make sure she stays on track.
Jody Keltner sees her daughter’s discipline constantly, especially in the way she commits to her own success for her teammates.
“It’s important to her to be at all those activities, but also remember what her goals are and how important it is that she performs well for her team,” she said.
“Do I even want to run anymore?”
As much as Keltner trains to ensure she is ready to compete physically, one of her biggest journeys as a runner was mental.
During her sophomore year track season, she was reaching the home stretch of the two-mile race at state when she faltered and couldn’t quite claim the title. She let the disappointment carry into the 1,600-meter race, which she called “the most mentally challenging race of my life.”
After the season, she took some time to reflect on her identity outside of running. So much of her worth had been tied up with her lap times and state medals for so long, she had started to lose her identity off the course.
“It was a really hard moment in my life,” Keltner said. “I was like, ‘Do I even want to run anymore?’”
She started to focus on some other parts of her life and her identity off the course. In the end, she had to remember who she was running for: Eudora.
Keltner’s passion for her school and community is obvious. She’s student council president, a certified nursing assistant, a basketball player and a mainstay on the front row of the student section.
“I want to leave a legacy, not only on the track and the cross country course, but as a good student leader, a person that helps everyone,” Keltner said.
Barnard said Keltner’s passion is one of her most admirable qualities, evident in her running and every other area of her life.
“She has a lot of pride in Eudora,” Barnard said. “It’s not just in the school, but the community where she’s grown up.”
Keltner credited her mom for helping her through the tough months, always reminding her that she has value that spreads far beyond her running skills.
“There’s more to her than just being a competitive athlete,” Jody Keltner said. “It’s about being a good friend, a good community member, a good sister to her older and younger sisters and being a good role model.”
One specific area that has driven Keltner is her passion for girls sports. She said she was proud of how much the last few years have helped grow girls sports in Eudora.
“The amount of essays I’ve written about getting women’s sports televised on TV is insane,” she said. “Girls’ sports are on the up and up, and people better come watch, because you’re missing some really cool stuff.”
Jody Keltner said she was grateful her daughter got to experience “a wonderful time for girls sports.”
As Keltner recognized that she was more than what she did on the course or track, it freed her to start running with less pressure. When she connected her identity as a Cardinal to her identity as a runner, things started to click.
“I’m not running for just Hanna Keltner,” she said. “Hanna Keltner is not on my cross country top. It’s Eudora. So, I just want to represent Eudora well and remember that Eudora is not just an athletic school, it’s an academic school. We have an amazing culture at Eudora, and being involved in my school just helps me remind myself that.”
Last year, one year removed from what she described as one of her worst moments, came one of her best. Keltner won the 1,600-meter race at state.
“That was like, probably one of the best moments of my life,” she said. “It was so emotional … All those people that stood by my side, supporting me, finally getting to see what they supported.”
“You have nothing to lose”
Keltner has always had a lot of energy.
It is something that draws her to competition, where she can channel the energy for her own goals and help fuel her teammates.
Mayer, a 2022 graduate, said Keltner has the best energy of any teammate she’s ever been around.
“She has a positivity that is contagious,” Mayer said. “I wouldn’t trade my time as a cross-country runner for anything and she was a big reason why we all had so much fun. She is hard-working and determined to be great at what she does.”
When Barnard first started coaching Keltner, she recognized how serious she was about the sport. She was a student of the sport, he said, always wanting to improve and figure out the small changes she could make to shave seconds off her time.
This year, Barnard has seen Keltner step up into her role as a senior leader seamlessly, becoming a more complete runner and teammate.
“She’s always one of the first finishers in any race that she runs,” Barnard said. “But some kids, when they finish races, they take off, they go to the team tent and they sit down and they just rest. When Hanna finishes, she’s on her feet, walking down the last 100 meters as a fan cheering on her teammates. She’s pushing and supporting everybody to finish every race strong and kind of be their best and do their best.”
Keltner said Barnard has been influential in strengthening her mindset as a runner, equipping her with a no-excuses attitude.
Keltner says the pair have built up a strong bond, teasing each other and goofing around together. They even have matching “Hug Dealer” shirts.
“I don’t think he knows this, but I think I’m his best friend,” Keltner said.
But the pair doesn’t let their joking and humor get in the way of their goal: pushing Keltner to be her best.
Barnard said her state win in last year’s track season helped prepare her for the challenge ahead this season. So far, he hasn’t seen the pressure of her final year bothering her much.
“It looks more like business as usual,” Barnard said. “She’s off to a really good start.”
She knows the challenge ahead, and is ready to take the small steps each day to reach her goal: the top step of the podium.
“She is aware that there are lots of phenomenal runners that she will encounter, and that she’s got to work really, really hard, because she’s not going to be just handed that championship,” Jody Keltner said.
Keltner on Saturday got a taste of what it will take to win the state title. The Cardinals traveled to Wamego, where the state championship will be in November. Wamego has often been a tough course for Keltner because of its hills.
But on Saturday, Keltner claimed first by 25 seconds.
She has led the Cardinals to three team titles. She’s placed on the podium at state every time she’s competed. Last year, she won a state title during the track and field season. She’s proven she can win on a tough Wamego course.
It wasn’t all easy. She went through lows, too, fighting to define herself and build up her confidence. Now, her high school cross country journey culminates this fall.
But Keltner said she isn’t too nervous. She likes the pressure; she’s earned the pressure.
Now, it’s just time to run.
“That’s just kind of my motto this year. You have nothing to lose,” Keltner said. “Like, what’s holding you back from giving everything you have?”
Reach reporter Cuyler Dunn at [email protected]
If you appreciate our sports coverage, please donate. Our newspaper depends on your donations to provide coverage of Eudora and continue providing local news.
To donate to support our community journalism, please go to this link: tinyurl.com/y4u7stxj
