Published: November 12, 2009 08:31 pm      

Young State Champs

Somerset — Elementary school is usually considered as the formative years for young children, and sports at that age is usually confined to the 30 minutes of recess on the school’s playground each day.

Very seldom are young elementary children expected to compete in sports at a high level of statewide competition.

And usually little girls are more interested in Hannah Montana and giggling at their male counterparts, than worrying about winning an athletic event.

However, all those stereotypical notions don’t really apply to the Pulaski elementary girls cross country team.

This past fall, the Little Lady Maroons coped an elementary girls cross country state championship at the Meet of Champions at Lexington’s Masterson Station. What made the youthful feat even more impressive is that the same group of young girls finished as state runner-ups the previous year, and vowed to win the state title this year.

“I really just want the girls to have so much fun with running at practice and at each race so that they cannot wait for our next practice session or race,” Pulaski elementary girls coach Nancy New said. “Several times this season, people would ask me if we were going to win state. Everyone expected us to win. Many people wanted 2009 to be the year for a state elementary girls” title.”

Finishing second in state last year was exciting, but I did not want the girls to feel the pressure that they had to win state to feel good about their season,” New explained. “I just wanted them to go out and run smart. Sure, I was hopeful, but the field of runners (418) was huge this year at Masterson Station, and I knew that the large number or runners alone could cause my girls to be nervous. They are little girls who consistently give 100 percent heart every day. They are a joy to coach, and I could never be more proud of them.”

With over 40 teams from around the state gunning for the same ‘hill-n-dale’ title, the Little Lady Maroons didn’t succumb to the pressure and ran away with the golden trophy.

“My little runners really look up to the older cross country runners and want to be just like them,” New said. “The high school and middle school harriers encourage my runners every day at practice and before every race. I do not know what we would do without Coach (Mandy) Jones and her runners. Every year, I gain great runners.”

Coach New’s love for the sport and her enjoyment in working with the young girls has proved to be a winning combination. But New always tries to instill the love of running into the girls, instead of running to win.

“During every huddle prior to the race, we talked about just going out and running a clean, injury-free race and having fun,” New said. “My consistent goal is to help the girls become life-long runners because cross country is bigger than just any one race. It’s about the discipline of your mind and body for every life situation that may arise.”

Paced by fifth-grader Alyssa Hyden’s fifth-place finish, Pulaski scored a low of 173 points to win, which was just 12 points ahead of runner-up Goshen.

“Alyssa Hyden has won so many races — everyone expects her to win,” New said. “She is such a focused young lady. Her future as a runner, as well as Devin (Mayfield) and Sarah’s (Eversoll), looks very bright. This year, my top seven (Alyssa Hyden, Peyton Ingram, Devin Mayfield, Sydney New, Sarah Eversoll, Molly Smith, and Presley Ingram) were a very young team. The state race is an overwhelming experience.”

“My girls thought they had a good chance at winning, so when the time came to announce the state champion, my top seven stood with one foot resting on the stage ready to accept their state trophy,” New said. “Everyone wanted to touch and hold the trophy when parents began snapping pictures. These young ladies have accomplished something that they may never do again in their lifetime, and it’s truly been amazing to coach these girls.”