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LA CROSSE — Maddie Hibshman says this time, things will be different.
She’d like to believe she’s past the point of being intimidated by her surroundings. This time, The Ridges Golf Course, site of the WIAA state cross country meet on Saturday in Wisconsin Rapids, won’t seem like such a scary place.
You’d think Hibshman, an Onalaska High School junior, wouldn’t get rattled by a big-meet setting. After all, this is the third consecutive year she’s qualified for state. Last year she helped the Hilltoppers finish second in Division 1.
But Hibshman knows a little positive reinforcement can go a long way.
“In the past I’ve gone in thinking, ‘This is state.’ I’ve made it out to be much bigger than it is,” Hibshman said. “In the past it’s made me nervous. I’m not going to let that happen this year.”
You look at what Hibshman has accomplished so far this fall and you can’t help but believe her.
She easily made the transition to being the Hilltoppers’ No. 1 runner, a role held last year by Jami Hill. Hibshman won the MVC title. She won the Division 1 Logan sectional on Oct. 24 at Fields for Kids. Her 4,000-meter time of 15 minutes, 20.5 seconds was 11 seconds faster than runner-up Paige Skorseth of River Falls.
Hibshman hopes to carry that momentum to the state meet. As well as she performed last year at state — she finished 40th with a time of 15:34 — she was far from satisfied.
“I ran an OK race last year,” Hibshman said. “I know my potential, and so far at state I have not run up to that. I hope this year that I’m a lot more confident.”
That’s something Onalaska coach Darin Shepardson likes to hear from a runner he believes is capable of finishing in the top 10 on Saturday.
“Maddie is a really solid kid who has put in a lot of work. And she’s done a lot of stuff that no one has seen,” Shepardson said.
“When you get to the state meet you have to concentrate on running your own race. There are going to be a lot of good runners at state, and Maddie is one of them.”
Hibshman also is confident in her abilities. She believes that will be the case come Saturday.
“(Running at state) does get easier,” Hibshman said. “I remember how nervous I was my freshman year. But I’m a lot more confident now.”
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