“I always thought about going to my happy place and pretended I was running on a beach,” Williams said. “It’s been a long journey.”
Going the distance continues to be a Beavercreek tradition. Williams was on the Beavers’ cross country state championship teams in 2018 and 2019 and finished third as an individual in 2020. She qualified in three events at the D-I state track meet in 2019 (the 2020 meet was cancelled) and placed in the 3,200 relay (third), 1,600 relay (sixth) and 1,600 run (seventh).
Hobbs was also on the 1,600 relay.
“We just have great coaching. The culture of our team,” Hobbs said of the program’s distance success which in recent seasons has included Taylor Ewert, Savannah Roark, Jodie Pierce and Kendall Hobbs among others. “We’re all friends and we all just have fun. All of our hard work translates in our races.”
Hobbs and Williams enter this week’s Division I district track and field meet as runners to watch in their respective events.
Both claimed individual championships at the Greater Western Ohio Conference meet last week. Hobbs won the 400 in 59.09, the only runner in the finals to break the one-minute mark. Williams won both the 800 (2:16.74) and 1,600 (4:59.54) runs. They also teamed up with senior Ashtyn Gluck and sophomore Elinor Shuttleworth to win the 1,600 relay (4:04.85).
Both Hobbs and Williams grew up playing soccer. Williams dropped soccer in the seventh grade to concentrate on track. Hobbs went all in on track her junior season. It was during that freshman season she started to realize her potential. Coaches asked her to run the 400. Hobbs accepted the challenge.
“I was terrified and it was awful,” Hobbs said of her first race, smiling at the memory. “It was not what I expected at all. Toward the end of the season I finally figured out how to pace myself.
“Now I love the 400. I just like that there’s enough time to hunt people down. It’s definitely a gut race. I just want to get out really fast the first 100, relax a little bit then give it all I’ve got until the finish.”
Next season Williams will compete for the University of Kentucky. Hobbs has an academic scholarship to the University of Alabama and is talking to the track coaches.
“I don’t know what I’ll do without track,” Hobbs said of considering continuing her running career. “I just like the feeling of winning.”
The district tournaments started Tuesday with the D-III preliminary meets at Northmont and Piqua. Preliminary D-I meets are Wednesday at Bellbrook and Troy. D-II is Thursday at Graham and Piqua.
The D-I finals are Friday with D-II and D-III finals Saturday. The top four athletes in each event advance to next week’s regional meet.
“A state championship is definitely the goal,” Williams said. “I’ve had my eye on that for a while. I’m looking for the mile and anything else that happens is kind of whatever happens.
“I feel so blessed. My past high school career I’ve ran and trained with so many talented girls like Taylor, Savannah, Jodie and Kendall. It’s not that I was in their shadow before, but now I’m kind of winning races and it’s just a different angle to see myself. It’s been a really good year. … We have a ton of young girls who are coming on, too, which is awesome. Just keep looking out for Beavercreek. We’re not done yet and in years to come they are still coming on.”
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