This past Saturday Senior Halle Hill of HSE Girls Cross Country made school history, running the fastest 5k time for a female athlete in the program. The record was set at the Riverview Health Invite at Northview Church in Carmel on Saturday morning. Hill finished the race 4th overall in an incredible time of 17:52.

The previous record was held by four-time All-State runner Rachel Nichwitz with a time of 17:58. Nichwitz had held the record since 2014. Nichwitz was a runner for the Royals from 2011 to 2014 and went on to run cross country and track for the University of Arkansas.

Hill knew going into the race that the competition of the meet would be unmatched, and wanted to take advantage of her opportunity to race against some of the top talent in the state. When asked whether her goal going into that specific race was to break the school record Hill responded saying, “It had always been a goal of mine to break the school record at some point, and the race on Saturday gave me the perfect opportunity to do just that.”

Hill has run for the Royals since her freshman year, and has been a member of the varsity squad for all four years. She plans to commit to a college for running later this fall, and has high expectations for the rest of the season ahead. When asked what her future goals are for this season Hill stated, “If possible, I’d love to break the school record again. Another main goal would also be to finish top 10 at the State meet.”

Hill will continue her impressive season with the Royals racing at the Hoosier Crossroads Conference Meet on September 26th. She hopes to continue the progress she has made with the team and finish out her final season with the Royals striving towards her goals.