Highland junior Isaac Sytsma did not enjoy his first high school cross country practice.
“We ran six miles and I thought, ‘I can’t do this,'” he said. “So I didn’t come back.”
Sytsma did not run cross country his first two years at Highland, focusing instead on basketball, where he’s been a starter since a freshman.
But Sytsma returned to cross country this season and showed why his teammates were constantly working to get him back to the sport. This Saturday, Sytsma will end his first high school season at the state meet in Terre Haute.
From the first day of practice this season, Sytsma knew he’d made the right decision in returning to cross country.
“When I came in at my first practice, everyone was encouraging,” he said. “It was just a great family atmosphere that made me want to be a part of it.”
Sytsma had his middle school cross country experience to guide him. By the time Sytsma ran at the Harrison Invitational over Labor Day weekend, coach Rob Lukowski said he thought Sytsma could be statebound.
“With the progression he made from our first Saturday meet to that one,” Lukowski said. “I knew there was a possibility that he’d advance to the point where he could put himself in that position.”
But Lukowski said he wasn’t certain of that conclusion until the postseason. And Sytsma didn’t view the state meet as a real possibility until his eighth-place finish at the Crown Point Regional in 16 minutes, 56 seconds.
“I was motivated for semistate,” Sytsma said. “It was in my head that I could do it. I had to do it for my team. I had them in the back of my mind. I wanted to do it for them so that we could have another week of our season because I know our seniors didn’t want it to end.”
Sytsma clocked 16:06 at the New Prairie Semistate — the No. 3 time in program history — placing 17th overall and punching his ticket to state.
But Sytsma refused to take sole credit for his stellar debut season, crediting his coach and his teammates more than himself.
“It’s been one big family,” he said. “The team is always there for me and it’s really meant a lot to me. And I have to thank my coach for making this possible. Without him, I probably wouldn’t be going to state.”
Sytsma’s week of practice before state is significantly different than the one heading into semistate, though.
“I know he felt the expectations in the last two weeks from his teammates because they wanted him to do well,” Lukowski said. “This weekend, there is no pressure because there are no expectations. He met his goal, he’s there. Now he just needs to have fun.”
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Dave Melton is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.