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Mustangs’ Hull climbs to 33rd in finale

FORT DODGE -- Sydney Hull ran with the experience of a senior making their final trek around the Iowa High School State Cross Country Championships course.

It's far from her last hurrah.

East Marshall's two-time state qualifier came away with 33rd place in Class 1A on Friday morning at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge, finishing just outside of where she had her sights set.

"I just wanted a good race, just to finish on a good note and just appreciate that I came here again," she said. "It wasn't what I wanted -- I was close, so close to my goal of top 30 -- but I'm happy with it because I got my best first- and second-(mile) splits."

Hull finished with an overall time of 20 minutes, 27.7 seconds -- roughly 10 seconds off her career-best clocking -- but seven seconds ahead of her time from last year's state meet debut.

She ran 6:12.9 over the opening mile and 6:41.9 in the second mile, putting her in the neighborhood of the final placing she was searching for.

"It was one last meet, one last good try to go out and try to PR (personal record) and have a good race in general," Hull said. "I just wanted to stay positive and finish on a good note, a high note."

A year after placing 38th in 20:34.0, she improved in both.

"I just learned to push myself more up those hills, especially since I know everyone dies in this cold and some girls aren't used to hills because some girls have flat courses their whole season," Hull said. "I just know that is an advantage to keep in mind.

"There definitely were still nerves, but probably not as much as last year. It's more the adrenaline and the anticipation of running it one last time."

Hull had contact with some college recruiters after the race, and it's like she'll pursue cross country or track -- or both -- at the next level.

"I definitely have a few schools in mind to run somewhere but I'm getting that locked down more," she said.

She emerged as East Marshall's highest finisher at state since Mkenzie Robinson was 26th in 2020 with a time of 20:24.25.

Comets' Hinderhofer makes state meet debut

BCLUW junior Tommy Hinderhofer didn't get exactly what he wanted out of his first appearance the Iowa High School State Cross Country Championships, so he'll have to come back next year and get a second chance at that first impression.

Hinderhofer finished 112th out of 152 runners in Friday's Class 1A boys race, running to a time of 18 minutes, 48.7 seconds in his maiden voyage at state.

The Comet junior got out of the gates at a strong pace, hitting 5:22.8 at the 1-mile marker, but the pace was unsustainable. He fell out of that groove and got off track as the adrenaline wore off on the backside of the course.

"I think it was just the hype," he said. "First time a state, runner's high when there was a ton of people around all yelling, and then there's no one yelling in the back. I was so tired and then the cold weather and bad breathing pattern …"

Hinderhofer's starting mile had him at a projected pace of 16:40.5, which would have been a personal record by nearly one minute. His season-best time of 17:39.40 would have had him crossing the finish line in 53rd place.

"I was looking forward to just running, the satisfaction of it," he said. "I've been working hard all these years and for it to pay off was great.

"I was just going into it like it's just another race and you can do hard things, but now I kinda want a do-over. But there's no take-backs in life, I've gotta take this opportunity and go into next season with it."