Ada Ferrell has accomplished what most cross country athletes dream of – and that’s to qualify for the state meet.
The Wright City junior will make her second straight appearance at the Class 3 state meet after placing 22nd with a time of 22:08 seconds in the Class 3, District 3 meet on Nov. 1 at Linn High School. The state meet is scheduled for Nov. 7 at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia.
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Ada Ferrell has accomplished what most cross country athletes dream of – and she did it after having missed the majority of the season.
The Wright City junior will make her second straight appearance at the Class 3 state meet after placing 22nd with a time of 22:08 seconds in the Class 3, District 3 meet on Nov. 1 at Linn High School. The state meet is scheduled for Nov. 7 at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia.
“It feels very rewarding. I wasn’t even ranked to go to state – I was ranked 32nd, so beating those 10 people that I wasn’t supposed to beat was rewarding and it tells me I can do anything if I put my mind to it,” Ferrell said.
Ferrell competed in just her fourth meet of the season. She missed the majority of the year due to a knee injury which forced her to go to physical therapy and numerous doctor appointments.
Jumping right back into the sport was tough and while she is still dealing with some pain, Ferrell’s ability to see the bigger picture has helped her push through.
“It’s definitely more difficult and it’s a lot of self discipline,” Ferrell said. “When I’m running I think ‘this hurts, I want to stop,’ but that’s how everybody’s feeling. Everybody’s saying this hurts or I want to quit, so I just get it done.”
With a hilly course at districts, her knee and getting used to running shape again, Ferrell persevered.
“We did a lot of hill practices and we really trained for it, so we had that muscle memory of running hills,” Ferrell said.
Ferrell is already preparing herself for the state meet. She is scheduled to run at 9:45 a.m.
“I’ve been resting my knee, making sure to get enough sleep, drinking water, eating healthy and just doing the things that my body needs,” Ferrell said.
Ferrell placed 72nd in 22:01 under rainy and muddy conditions in last year’s meet. She said she feels confident that she will turn in a much better showing in this year’s race.
“I’ve got the idea of how to run with that many people on that course and this year, I think I can really use my technique and past experience to benefit me,” she said.
She said her goal is to place at least in the top 60.
“It’s kind of a jump but last year, it was raining and I think I can definitely shave down my time because it’s a really good course,” Ferrell said.
