MINNEAPOLIS – If there was any doubt about who the best runner in Bemidji High cross country history was before Saturday, senior Mia Hoffmann put all other notions to bed.
She ran to a second-place time of 18:00.3, beating Wayzata’s Jazleen Malherek-Osorio (18:00.6) by less than a second. Hoffmann trailed only Nora Hushagen of Forest Lake, who won the state championship with a mark of 17:27.6.
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For Hoffmann, Saturday was months in the making.
“It’s definitely bittersweet,” Hoffmann said. “I’ve been running in the state meet since I was a freshman. To have it be the last one was pretty emotional.
“I’ve been running since the end of the track season, training for this race. I’ve been visualizing this in every workout. Today was the accumulation of all the hard work I’ve put in since high school. It was definitely worth it. Standing on that stage and hearing my name called out will always be special to me.”
I may not be up in Bemidji anymore with , but a big congrats to 's Mia Hoffmann for placing 2nd overall (18:00.3) in the Class 3A state meet. Great finish to a terrific career! NDSU is getting a good one!
— Chaz Mootz (@ChazMootzTV)
Hoffmann now has the best finish of any runner in BHS history, and it was at least 30 seconds faster than every runner who finished outside of the top 10.
“She got to run head-to-head against some kids that she hasn’t run against yet,” head coach Ryan Aylesworth said. “She faced some really, really good competition, and she battled. I’m really proud of how she came back at the end of the race and battled all the way to the line. She did awesome, and I’m super proud of her.”
As she sprinted down the final 100 yards, Hoffmann had to fend off a few trailing runners she passed to get into second place.
“Coming down the home stretch, I just passed a group of girls,” Hoffmann said. “I knew that they were going to keep coming after me. I just kept my focus on the finish line. I was focused on driving my arms. I’m just glad to come away with second place.
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“I’m thankful to God for giving me the ability to run. I have an amazing team supporting me. All of them were out there cheering for me. I’m just so blessed.”
Three other Bemidji runners competed at state on Saturday. Will Termont took 32nd place with a time of 16:08.7. Isaac Schouten (16:27.0, 57th) and Tanner Johnson (17:01.7, 116th) finished with season-best times to cap the boys race for the Lumberjacks.
“I’m really impressed with them,” Aylesworth said. “Two of the three of them ran their best times of the year against some really good competition, and I’m really proud of them for that. It was just another solid day for us and the boys.”
The state meet was moved from the campus of St. Olaf College in Northfield to Les Bolstad Golf Course at the University of Minnesota. It’s also the home of the Roy Griak Invitational, a meet the Jacks have experience running. Aylesworth said about half of the course was similar to the layout of the Griak, giving BHS a leg up in its preparation.
“The course was a fair course,” Aylesworth continued. “It’s a good venue for the state meet, and we were pleased with how everything was. There was a lot of good energy down there, and it was just a really good day for us overall.”