FORTVILLE — To an outside person, Hannah Hauser doesn’t seem like the typical No. 1 runner on a cross country team.
But that’s part of what makes the Mt. Vernon freshman — The Daily Reporter Girls Cross Country Athlete of the Year — so special.
“It’s a really cool dynamic right now because she’s not one to back away, but she also wants to be part of the team,” Mt. Vernon head coach Brian Williams said. “She is the most unassuming person I’ve ever met. She’s not arrogant, and she’s not full of herself. She’s the perfect person to be your No. 1 runner because she acts like she’s not the No. 1 runner. You would never know she was the No. 1 except for her performance. That’s a unique thing for a young person to have.”
As a freshman, Hauser stepped right into the No. 1 spot on a Mt. Vernon roster that had lost its top two runners to graduation from the previous season.
“I think more than anything, what is surprising is to see a freshman come in and just assimilate into the team as well as she did. You would not have known she was a freshman from the way she behaved around everybody and the way they accepted her,” Williams said. “It was like she’d been on the team for years. I think the girls all saw how hard she was willing to work, and it was like they had already known each other. It was a really interesting dynamic.”
She proved that she belonged in that spot just three races into her career, winning the Arabian Roundup.
“It’s huge to have somebody that is now always a low stick,” Williams said. “When you lose your No. 1 and No. 2 runners it’s tough, so to be able to have someone come in, and they’re immediately erasing that No. 1 runner it makes things easier. Hannah was a huge part of that.”
She went on to take first at the Hancock County meet, third at the Hoosier Heritage Conference meet and fifth at the Mt. Vernon Sectional, all while being the top runner for a Mt. Vernon team that placed 18th at semi-state.
For Hauser, getting to experience semi-state was important for her in her first season.
“I’d never really experienced that big of a meet before, or a meet that was that big of a deal,” she said. “It was a good learning experience, even though that wasn’t my best race. It still helped me understand how to run those types of races.”
Fourth grade marks the beginning of Hauser’s journey into the sport of cross country, and it’s something that she fell in love with quickly.
“In fourth grade, my dad just asked me if I wanted to give it a try, and I was like ‘Why not.’ Once I started running, I just got really invested in it, and I really liked the sport, so I just stuck with it,” Hauser said. “It came pretty naturally to me, but I had a good coach that helped me get into the sport at first.”
Although the sport came naturally to her, her hard work has been a major part of what’s gotten her to this point in her career. Williams had seen her race back in middle school and knew she was talented, but wasn’t aware of just how hard of a worker she was.
“I don’t think I expected her to work as hard as she did, though. She’s very highly motivated, and really just wants to run hard all the time,” Williams said. “Her work ethic and need to do well quickly told me that she’s a special young lady in terms of just what she’s willing to do to get better.”
That all became evident to Williams and the rest of the team quickly, though. And her performances in practice speaks to her drive and want to get better.
“She does have some innate abilities that are definitely a plus, but she’s willing to work as hard as she has to, and she’s not afraid to work,” Williams said. “There’s been a number of times where I’ve given her a time to run at practice, and she has run faster than that time and then would apologize. I just always found it interesting that she was apologizing for running too fast. It’s just a really good combination of God-given ability, and not taking it for granted.”
While her coaches see it one way, Hauser herself, gives a lot of that credit to the mentors that she’s had along the way, including Williams.
“I just had a really good coach, and I’ve had really good coaches in the past,” Hauser said. “I’ve just been blessed with all of the coaches that I’ve had. They just motivated me to put a lot of dedication into the sport.”
Even having as successful of a freshman season as she had, both Hauser and Williams recognize that the grind of the season affected her down the stretch, and that’s something both are making a big goal at improving upon next season. In the final two races of the season, Hauser was the Marauders third runner at the regional race, finishing 19th, and then placed 77th at semi-state.
“I just want to get better, and learn more about handling certain situations in races,” Hauser said. “ I know at the end of the season I started struggling with some mental obstacles during races, so I just want to get better at pushing those aside and not letting that affect my race as much.
“She’s ready to compete at a very high level. There’s no doubt that her season didn’t quite end the way that we had hoped, but that’s not to say it was a bad ending,” Williams added. “I think youth and the long season, and being in high school started to wear on her, so we’re going to make some adjustments that will help out a bunch with her handling the workload next season. She’s definitely going to be a major part of what we’re doing, and that calls the other girls to see things a little differently and push harder.”
With three years still ahead of her, Hauser’s still got plenty to prove on the track, and will be even better for it because of all the ups-and-downs that she dealt with this season.
We have a number of eighth graders coming up next year, so she’s going to be a big part of the leadership group that helps them learn how to handle the season better,” Williams said. “She’s a critical piece for what we want to accomplish.”
2022 Daily Reporter Fall Sports Honors
Girls Cross Country Athlete of the Year: Hannah Hauser, Mt. Vernon
Girls Cross Country Coach of the Year: Brian Williams, Mt. Vernon
*All-Hancock County Team
Hannah Hauser, Mt. Vernon; Emma Gale, Mt. Vernon; Courtney Study, New Palestine; Melinda Cornelius, Mt. Vernon; Julia Iserloth, Mt. Vernon; Lexie Copeland, Greenfield-Central; Emaline Capen, Greenfield-Central; Lexi Baynes, New Palestine; Reagan Crouch, Greenfield-Central; Kendall Barrett, Greenfield-Central.
*Determined by Top 10 finish at 2022 Hancock County Meet
