Kokomo Tribune - Friday, October 31, 2008

Western senior Corey Scott always knew he would participate in Saturday’s 63rd annual IHSAA Boys Cross Country State Finals in Terre Haute, and he’ll be one of nearly 200 runners to toe the line at the LaVerne Gibson Championship Course around 1:45 p.m.

Scott, though, also believed he’d be running with his teammates and not as an individual. But after he finished seventh overall at the New Prairie Semistate last Saturday while the Panthers were finishing seventh as a team — one spot and 10 points shy of a state berth — Scott will grudgingly settle for the solo run.

Scott is the first Western runner to compete downstate since Annina Gruber in 2005, and the first male runner since Kyle Walsh placed 32nd in 2003.

“It would be a lot more fun, a lot more relaxing if they were all [running],” Scott said, noting that his team will be there cheering him on. “It would have just been a good experience for everyone.”

Confidence in himself is a big reason why Stephen Bain of IndianaRunner.com called Scott the “most improved runner of the year” in prelude to the semistate.

Indeed, to finish seventh this year in 16 minutes, 12.9 seconds Scott had to leap forward 59 places and more than a minute faster than his 2007 race at New Prairie when he was 66th in 17:32.8.

Further evidence of Scott’s progress came earlier this season when he was eighth at the New Prairie Invitational and third at the New Haven Invitational, run on the same IPFW course as Saturday’s New Haven Semistate.

That day in September, Scott beat James Martin of No. 2-ranked Carroll of Allen County. Martin won Saturday’s New Haven Semistate in 15:25.6 and was the state runner-up a year ago.

Scott also owns victories over Ross Ochs and Josh Graham of Huntington North, third and fourth respectively Saturday at New Haven; and Oak Hill’s Cameron Balser, who was second at New Prairie.

“He has a lot more confidence in himself now,” Western coach Joe Orr said when comparing Scott’s junior and senior seasons. “When he went through the New Prairie and New Haven experience his confidence grew because he was running up with runners I don’t think he thought he could run with.

“Now he knows he can. It’s just a matter of doing it where all of them are together.”

Scott’s semistate time ranks him among the top 40 or so runners entering Saturday, but comparing times can be subjective from course to course.

Orr said Scott needs to run against his fellow competitors, not against the clock.

STATE BOUND: Western senior Corey Scott, shown running at the Western Invitational in August, finished seventh Saturday in the New Prairie Semistate. He advances to the state meet. KT photo

“Time’s not going to be as important as competing with the other runners,” said Orr. “He just has to go out with a certain pack and know what your pace is and what you’re capable of doing. I think he’s definitely in that [top-25] ballpark.”

Scott said his outstanding season has been the product of a newfound dedication and a year of being near the peak of health. He recalled fracturing his hip after one race as a freshman and lacking desire to improve as a sophomore.

“After that I decided that, if I was going to [run cross country], then I wasn’t going to waste my time,” he said. “I’m going to actually try.

“I’m running a lot harder that second mile than I would have last year. I’m not scared to go hard because that’s really the key. If you have a good second mile, you’ll probably have a good race.”

If Scott is feeling the pressure of the state finals he’s not showing it, although he’ll be going up against what he called “some crazy good” runners on Saturday.

“I felt a lot more nervous for semistate than I do for this,” said Scott. “I’ve got nothing to lose. I’ve still got quite a bit left in me and I feel like I could do a lot better.”