Lily Kiser runs with Ross history in her heart

Lily Kiser knows where she is and where she’s going.

She seems to have a good idea of who she is as well. Only a sophomore, Kiser owns the best time in history for Fremont Ross cross country. She’s thankful for it. Still, she most wants to see others succeed.

She finished third overall as the Little Giants captured the first regional crown in program history.

“We came back — with a lot of freshmen — and worked so hard and spent so much time together,” Kiser said. “We did what we did all season; it was so special to experience that with the team.”

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The district championship was also a first for Ross. Kiser finished in a career-best 17 minutes, 51 seconds at regional.

“I had no idea the team would make it this far with a solid shot to win state,” she said.

Julia Norris was fifth at 18:37, Brooklynn Eisenhauer was seventh at 18:46, Kennedy Walker was 21st and Sophia Metcalf was 31st. Kiser looks at Eisenhauer like a little sister and took Eisenhauer under her wing. Eisenhauer reminds Kiser of Kiser, and she loves to see Eisenhauer blossom.

Kiser is also close to Metcalf, a senior. Some days Metcalf loves running, some days she hates it. Metcalf told Kiser before the race at Huron that Metcalf would beat 20 minutes for a personal best.

“She was so surprised and so happy; I loved seeing her,” Kiser said. “To reach my goals, it will never be the same as seeing those I love reach success. It means so much more to me. I know that feeling of reaching your goal and finally doing something maybe you didn’t even think was possible.

“To do it, it’s incredible. Running is what I love most. To see someone experience that in real time, it’s the best thing ever for me.”

Kiser qualified for state as a freshman and finished 96th. She considered it a blessing just to be there. Still, she remembers the girls standing on the podium. Now, she wants one of those spots.

“If you don’t get out very fast, you’re going to get buried in the pack and it’s not going to go well,” Kiser said. “It’s supposed to be fun — it was — but I want to be up there. I made it a priority to come back and be on that podium.

“I’m hungry for as high as I can get in the state rankings. I’d love to be in the top eight, top five, PR.”

Before she graduates, she wants to win the first state championship in program history.

“I’d love to leave high school with a state title in something, maybe more than one,” she said. “After high school, I’d love to go to a Division I college for cross country and track.”

She might study for a career in dietetics and sports nutrition. When the time comes. She was 10th at state in the 3,200 and competed on the 4×800 relay as a freshman. She loves the 2-mile race.

Kiser first established the program mark at Norm Bray, in the first race of the season. She was more than a minute faster than her best time as a freshman. She would have been pleased just to have reached her goal of 17-something. She was thrilled to recalibrate her ambitions and has reduced her best time six times.

“It normalized and I kept taking off time,” she said. “It kind of just happened. It’s been a blessing. When you truly love something, success is inevitable. I’m just getting started and I can’t wait to see what happens.”

Initially, Kiser was a little shocked by herself. Now, she often trains with the boys team to push her. She appreciates the invitation. She established a course record at Huron and Old Fort.

Kiser knew she wanted to be the fastest in Ross history. She also wanted to know who set the standard. Jami (Toeppe) Raubenolt ran 18:38 to finish runner-up in Ohio as a freshman in 1994. Raubenolt died of brain cancer in 2021. Kiser had no idea she’d bettered Raubenolt’s record while she was doing so.

“Now, whenever I try to break the record again, I like to think I’m running for her,” Kiser said. “It’s important to remember, it’s not just breaking a record; somebody had that record before me. It’s hard work and I respect it so much and I love it so much.

“I never met (Raubenolt), but thinking about that when I go to break the record, it’s very special. I always pictured myself as one of the best from Fremont; it’s great to be experiencing that now.”

mhorn@gannett.com

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This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Lily Kiser runs with Ross history in her heart