Girls cross country 2023: Avon’s Kaitlyn Reese not satisfied with successful freshman season, wants to keep getting better and better
Paul Heyse
The Chronicle-Telegram
Aug 21, 2023 5:30 AM
Kaitlyn Reese might have been a freshman last season but she definitely didn't run like one.
Reese was the catalyst for Avon's girls cross country team to earn its first state berth since 1988.
Once at state, she finished 20th out of 172 runners in the Division I meet in a time of 18:45.0 to become the first Avon girl to earn All-Ohio (top 30) honors since Jennifer (Schaefer) Parker finished 13th at the 1988 Division III (then Class A) state meet.
And with her leading the way, the Eagles, who were ranked eighth in the state, finished 12th out of 20 teams with 296 points.
Now a seasoned sophomore, Reese wants to improve on all those marks this season. But she knows she can't do it alone.
"We did very well as a team last year so the goal is to keep that momentum going," she said. "Track season helped me out a lot. I learned better race strategies. I learned how to improve my race game plan versus just trying to race off of what other people are doing. With the team, this is the mindset we're striving for. We're all in it together and we can all do this."
It was the Eagles' first state team appearance since moving up to Division I in 2011. Avon placed third in 1988 and fourth in 1987 at the Division III state championships.
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