Lily Myers was inspired to run by watching others.

Now, she’s watching her dream come true.

The Bloomington South senior distance standout recently signed her letter-of-intent to run at Indiana University. That’s an event that even three years ago, might have been hard for Myers to imagine.

“I’ve been running so long,” Myers said. “When I was younger, I got to watch high school and college meets and I’d be excited. I thought it would be cool to do that one day.

“As I got into high school, I didn’t know what to expect or how I’d do. And as I moved through the year, I realized I had a shot at this, so it’s exciting for me. I was motivated to accomplish this goal of mine. I’m just so thrilled about it. And my friends and family are happy for me.”

There’s even more reason now, as Myers will repeat as the Herald-Times Girls’ Cross Country Runner of the Year. It followed another strong performance this fall, that, while it didn’t end with another state medal like it did last year, did finish with her at her best.

She posted a fast time of 18:09.5 this year, 23 seconds better than last year. She was coming off a track season in which she was 10^th at state in the 3,200 and broke the school record with a 10:47.37.

“I think I had a lot more confidence after both cross country and track my junior year,” Myers said. “I finally figured out what works for me and how to achieve my goals.”

Boy's season:Bloomington South junior Ryan Rheam leads All-Area boys cross country team

Keeping herself engaged and focused on improving was a lot easier this year as well, having a stronger team to back her up. South missed out on state last year, leaving Myers to run by herself. This time, the Panthers, led by a fifth-place finish from Myers, were second at semistate.

“Having a really good team this year was encouraging, really motivating,” Myers said. “And also, I wanted to be good for myself and as a team leader, setting a good example.

“I was just making sure I was always training the hardest in practice and at meets. And making sure I was encouraging everyone, making sure everyone was staying on track, including myself. I had cross country under control, having done it the past three years. We had a pretty young team, so it was making sure they had everything under control like I did.”

Eyes set on state

Myers was off to Terre Haute, coming off a solid 18:22.5 at the Brown County Semistate, a 12-second PR on a warm day. She had also cruised to titles at sectional and regional before turning on the jets.

“I was feeling pretty confident and I had some really big goals,” Myers said. “Especially based off my performance last year at the state meet. Getting through semistate, regional and sectional was not an issue. I was just taking it easy and doing what I needed to do and semistate was a lot faster.

“Then at state, getting really caught up in how big the meet it was. I was anxious about not being able to reach my goal. But it was fun to be back as a team.”

State took off maybe as fast as it ever has, as 32 runners, including Myers finished in under 19 minutes. The first kilometer was covered by the leader in 3:03 and the top two went 17:14 and 17:17.

More:Lightning fast race leaves Myers 4 spots off podium at state cross country meet

“I knew I had to go out faster and I let myself get carried away with that,” Myers said. “I also went out pretty fast and it was hard to get back in the groove after I started out so long.”

She got through it, leaning on the training and the emphasis on doing things the right way this team had embraced.

“We were focusing on recovering hard this year,” Myers said. “That was just as important as working hard during workouts.”

Down the road

Myers showed what was still left in the tank by running a 17:48.6 in an even faster meet, the Nike Cross Regional at the same Terre Haute course. It’s the best time in Panther history. The next weekend, she represented the state in the Mideast Cross Country Championships.

The busy time included celebrating the signing of her scholarship to run for the Hoosiers. She began her search toward the end of last season, filling out questionnaires and talking to coaches who reached out to her. She kept them updated on her training and race results.

After track season, she decided to narrow down her list and had three finalists. Myers also visited Purdue and Louisville, but chose to stay home. As for track, she’s excited to give steeplechase a try.

“I really liked all the coaches,” Myer said. “I liked the team. I had a lot of fun on my visit. And I like Bloomington. I’ve lived here all my life.

“I’m not sure what I’m going to study yet, but it’s a big school so I’ll have a lot of choices and I can switch around. I’m confident I’ll find something.”

2022 H-T ALL-AREA GIRLS' CROSS COUNTRY TEAM

Rachel Allison, North, Sr.

Best time: 19:15.3. Sect: 11th; Reg: 24th; SS: 41st. Notables: All-CI (5th). Limited to just three 5k races at the end of the season; fell ill before the state series. Three-time All-Area.

Lilyanna Blais, Eastern Greene, So.

Best time: 19:26.0. Sect: 7th; Reg: 15th; SS: 27th. Notables: All-SWIAC (2nd). Seven top-seven finishes, including runner-ups at Scott Hiles and Shakamak Invite. Repeat All-Area.

Clara Crain, Edgewood, Sr.

Best time: 18:13.2. Sect: 2nd; Reg: 2nd; SS: 23rd. Notables: Missed part of the season due to injury but still won the Puckett Invite, Edgewood Invite and Ted Fox races, third at Eagle Classic. Four time All-Area. Will run at Belmont.

Hannah Crain, Edgewood, Fr.

Best time: 18:53.5. Sect: 3rd; Reg: 8th; SS: 14th; State: 115th (20:11.7). Notables: All-WIC (8th). Top 10 in eight races this season.

Esther Crane, Eastern Greene, Fr.

Best time: 19:31.5. Sect: 12th; Reg: 21st; SS: 29th. Notables: All-SWIAC (3rd). Six top-six finishes and was just five seconds off her PR at semistate.

Tamara Kun, South, Jr.

Best time: 19:16.6. Sect: 6th; Reg: 7th; SS: 19th; State: 126th (20:17.7). Notables: 16th at CI. First time runner for Panthers improved her time in each of her first six races.

Aurelia Martoglio, South, Fr.

Best time: 19:17.4. Sect: 5th; Reg: 3rd; SS: 20th; State: 175th (21:19.9). Notables: 12th at CI. Set career bests in five straight races, ending with season best at semistate.

Jasmine Martoglio, South, Fr.

Best time: 19:06.9. Sect: 4th; Reg: 4th; SS: 32nd; State: 116th (20:11.9). Notable: 13th at CI. Ran all but the first race in 20:18 or faster.

Lily Myers, South, Sr.

Best time: 18:09.5. Sect: 1st; Reg: 1st; SS: 5th; State: 24th (18:51.2). Notables: Repeat H-T Runner of the Year. All-CI (3rd). Top 10 finisher six times, including second at Franklin and Lafayette. Three-time All-Area. Will run at Indiana.

Ellie Patrick, North, Fr.

Best time: 19:58.9. Sect: 8th; Reg: 14th; SS: 46th. Notables: Set PR in first 5k of season and was one of the Cougars' steadiest performers throughout the season.

HONORABLE MENTION: Nola Somers Glenn, North, Jr. (19:52.8); Clara Graham, South, Jr. (19:57.8); Riley Haskett, Edgewood, Jr. (20:05.0); Julianne Hoover, South, Fr. (20:30.0); Lilah Reed, North, So. (20:39.0); Ellie Vagedes, Edgewood, Fr. (20:09.0).

Contact Jim Gordillo at jgordillo@heraldt.com or 812-331-4381 and follow on Twitter @JimGordillo.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bloomington South Lily Myers leads All-Area Girls Cross Country team