Cross-country a mental game for runner

October 24, 2017

For The Tribune

Lily Mullis is glad she joined the Seymour girls’ cross-country team her freshman year.

While she competed in a variety of sports previous years, running stuck.

“I had tried other sports in middle school and I didn’t quite like them as much as I liked running,” Mullis said. “I thought I would try it out and during the summer when I met all the other girls that I knew that I would want to be part of the team.

“Joining a team is definitely a good way to make your friends, and you can keep going back to them each year, and having the same group of girls you can always keep pushing each other year-after-year.”

Mullis, who said her best time was 22:43, said it was special being part of the state team in 2015.

“Definitely going to state my sophomore year was my favorite time,” she said. “We did do a practice before state. It was a really fun experience.”

Mullis said she planned out how she wanted to run her races.

“For my first mile I wanted to be around seven minutes, especially my sophomore year,” she said. “I think the second mile is the hardest part because you’re not racing for the finish, and you’re not just starting so I definitely think it’s the hardest mile.

“You just have to push yourself to keep going and remember what your goal is. I always wanted to have a fast mile at the finish. I stayed out the last two years to stay in shape and keep the friendships going and to have something to do after school.”

Whether practicing, or on the course, Mullis feels that all runners need to have a good mental outlook.

“It was very important in cross-country,” Mullis said. “Coach (Spencer) Sunbury always said whatever you put out that is what your outcome would be. You have to push yourself in the middle of the races even when you don’t want to, because if you don’t you’re going to be disappointed. It’s definitely an individual sport. No one can push you like you can push yourself.”

On the schedule, Mullis looked forward to the larger competitions.

“I like the big meets because you had someone to keep pushing yourself and racing,” she said. “If you know someone from another school has similar times or just a little bit better than you and you can always try to stick with them.”

The senior liked the variety of courses the Owls ran on.

The Owls ran in some races during late afternoon/early evening and some races on Saturdays.

“I liked to run on Saturday in the mornings because it was just cooler, and you’re well-rested because you’ve just woken up.”

Mullis said with Seymour having a running club for elementary-age boys and girls she expects the program to keep improving.

“I look for Seymour to be very strong going forward,” she said. “I think the numbers will continue to improve, especially since they’re doing more for the younger kids.”

She said she has enjoyed attending Seymour.

“I’ve enjoyed all the teachers and the community around here,” Mullis said. “I think everyone is very nice.

“What I’ll take away from cross-country is definitely the team bonding we did and the hanging out we did outside of practices. From school I’ll just take away all the friendships I’ve had and I appreciate that.”

[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”Mullis file” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]

Name: Lily Mullis

School: Seymour High School

Parents: Brad Mullis, Patty Mullis

Sibling: Joe

Sports: cross-country 4 years, track and field 1 year

Athletic highlights: part of cross-country state team 2015

Organizations: National Honor Society, Redding Christian Church Youth Group, D.A.R.E Role Model

No posts to display