“I’ve been saying for weeks that we lacked depth and the girls took that as a challenge,” the coach said. “We had some inspired performances Saturday.”

Shayla Fossum was Hillsboro’s top finisher, taking fourth place. She improved tremendously from just a week ago, cutting 30 seconds off of her time at regions with a time of 15:26 Saturday. The sophomore emerged as one of the premiere distance runners at the state with her performance, Zink said.

“Shayla’s just a fantastic runner and athlete,” the coach said. “And she came up with a great race.”

Mariah Fossum, who finished 17th at regions, also improved her time and place, coming in 15th with a time of 16:06. The junior ran her best race of the season.

“Mariah had just a tremendous day,” he said. “She couldn’t have run any better.”

Also coming up with a nice day was Annika Rotvold. The freshman cut her time by nearly a minute from regions. Rotvold finished 35th at state with a time of 16:51.

“There are two times the runners at state than there are at regions,” Zink said. “To have athletes improve their positions at state is very rare and Annika was one of our runners who did that. She easily ran the best race of her life.”

While there were several huge performances by Hillsboro runners, none was bigger than Katja Berge’s. The seventh-grader cut one minute and 24 seconds off her time at regions. Crossing the finish line at 17:08, Berge placed 51st. Ultimately, the team’s fifth-place finisher was the reason Hillsboro won the meet. The Burros’ sixth-highest finisher placed 104th. Only five runners are counted in the team totals. If it weren’t for Berge, Hillsboro would have dropped to third or fourth in the team standings.

“It was just an enormous accomplishment for Katja to do that well at state,” Zink said. “She found Annika Rotvold and got on her heels. Those two really pushed each other and it turned out to be the difference. That’s what being a team is all about.”

Brooklyn Zink placed 20th with a time of 16:08. Thought of as one of the individual favorites going into the race, she didn’t have her best race Saturday. For coach Zink, it was a bittersweet day as his team had a huge day, but his daughter struggled.

“As a coach, the day was a lot of fun. I was so proud of the team for winning state,” he said. “But from the standpoint of a dad it was tough. It was pretty disheartening to see Brooklyn, who works awfully hard, have a bad day. All athletes do it from time to time.  You just hope that it doesn’t happen at the state meet. She has put so much time and effort into this and to see her heartbroken after the meet was something you hate to see. I am so proud of how she battled through a tough day to still be an all-stater. I know she will use this experience to fuel her in the future.”

Tatiana Berge finished 104th with a time of 18:34. Elli Lemm and Nadia Robb placed 113th and 115th, respectively with times of 18:43 and 18:45. Addi Eckart took 143rd with a time of 19:30. Bailey Baesler came in 146th with a time of 19:34.

Seventh-graders Kody Pastian and Gavin Longthorne made up the boys team. Pastian placed 127th with a time of 22:26 while Longthorne took 144th with a time of 23:39.

“They both ran well and competed hard,” Zink said. “It was a great opportunity for those two to see what a state meet is all about. I think it was a good experience for everyone.”

The state meet was a rewarding experience for the Hillsboro cross-country team. By taking first, the girls team may have even exceeded its own expectations.

“At the first practice of the season, I don’t think a lot of the girls thought that a state championship was possible,” the coach said. “I knew it was, though. This is an exceptionally talented group. I think they found that all the early-morning practices were worth it in the end.”

Coach Zink hopes that the state championship will be a motivation to help the program expand in the coming years. With the Hillsboro cross-country team on the map, there has been a lot of interest in the team.

“It’s great that winning state can give our team and school exposure,” he said. “These athletes deserve it.”

From a two-member team just a year ago, the rise and emergence of the Hillsboro cross-country team is remarkable. For Zink, it’s been a surreal experience.

“It’s pretty special,” he said.