Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes. Heartland Christian’s Rebecca Geiss (left) takes a lead over Maplewood’s Caleigh Richards during the second lap of the Div. III 3200m from June in Dayton. Geiss would go on to place fourth with a time of 10:51 flat.
DAYTON — If one word could sum up Rebecca Geiss’s experience at the 2024 OHSAA state track meet, it would be ‘awesome.’
The Heartland Christian sophomore distance runner finished fourth in the Division III girls 3200-meter run, a race that also featured Maplewood’s multiple-time state champion Caleigh Richards.
“It’s awesome,” Geiss said of her podium placing. “It’s just a really great opportunity and competing against these amazing runners, that’s really awesome too.”
Geiss, who won Heartland Christian’s first cross country state title in the fall by edging out Richards, ran the two-mile race in 10 minutes and 51 seconds, more than 20 seconds quicker than her state meet time last year.
Despite this, Geiss finished fourth, a few spots lower than her second-place finish a year ago. But that’s not something Geiss is worried about.
“I think places changed this year just because girls are getting faster,” said Geiss, who complimented her “amazing” competition.
Regardless of the placing, Geiss’s improvement from her freshman to sophomore seasons was evident — after running 11:12.13 in the 3200-meter run last year, Geiss improved her time greatly and shrank the gap between herself and the winner from 19.13 seconds last year to just 3.48 seconds in Dayton this time around.
Although Geiss will certainly be a favorite to win a state championship in both cross country and track and field as a junior, she pays no mind to the greater expectations that come after winning a state title.
“I try not to think about that,” Geiss said. “I just focus on right now and what I’m doing.”
As for any goals, Geiss just wants to keep “racing against these awesome competitors.”
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Source: Heartland Christian’s Geiss lauds competition at state track meet
