The big time

In Alec Ille’s first state appearance, the sophomore finished with a time of 17 minutes and 38 seconds. While the finish fell beneath his goal, Ille and Coach John Bruns were happy for the experience. 
Running as Blooming Prairie’s first state cross-country runner since 2006, Ille had good support throughout the season, as well as at the state tournament, receiving a host of hugs and congratulations upon finishing his race. 
Ille’s finish of 17:38 on the St. Olaf College course fell 29 seconds slower than his finish at the section finals race, a time that would have given him a top 40 finish. Instead, Ille ended in 90th place, close to exactly the middle of a 176-participant race. 
Ille said the gameplan going into the race was to simply go out hard and hold on. 
“To be where I wanted to be [at the end], I had to be in there at the beginning.”
However, running on a cold November day with nearly 180 other state competitors, that goal did not come easy. 
“I felt like the beginning was kind of harsh,” said Ille. “I didn’t feel good, and it was hard breathing,” said Ille after the race. “It was rough.”
Despite falling farther back than he would have liked, the sophomore was still thrilled to be counted among the participants, noting that he was very aware of the bigness of the day’s race. 
“It was a good experience just getting used to it,” said Ille. 
Bruns, who has been watching Ille for quite some time, was glad to see his athlete’s hard work pay off for him this season.
“This has been a goal of Alec’s for a long time - to get here and to just have a chance to compete and have this experience,” said Bruns. “I’m just really proud of all the work he’s put in to get himself here.”
Bruns was also quick to note the difficult task of a cross-country runner qualifying for state, something he knows well, with Ille marking the first state runner in nearly 10 years. 
“It’s not something [where] you just show up and you are in the state meet,” noted Bruns. “You have to put in a lot of time, mile, pool workouts and weight room workouts. He’s definitely done a lot to get himself here.”
Just a sophomore, Ille will have two more shots at making it to state and moving his way up in the ranks.