Running with the Mavericks

Running is a simple sport.

Dietrich Larson is inspired by the simplicity and rhythm of running. MSA’s swift-footed sophomore is a rising star in cross-country, and he is leading the charge in a renaissance of XC running on the Hill.

“Running is a sport where you don't need anything, even shoes (though they help), and you can continue to excel beyond where you thought you could go,” Dietrich said.

During the fall cross-country season, Dietrich excelled beyond his and his coaches’ expectations. He led the Mavericks throughout the season and smashed his own personal records in the 5k week after week.

“He surprised himself and me,” coach Luke Robbins remarked. “At the beginning of the season, Dietrich had never broken 20-minutes in the 5k, and he said that it was his goal for the season to run a sub-20. He accomplished it in our first race, so we recalibrated.”

After the first race, Dietrich and Coach Robbins went back to the drawing board and mapped out a training plan more inline with Dietrich’s capacity for training and his natural abilities. This culminated in a remarkable performance at Conference Championships. Dietrich ran a 17:53 on a challenging course and earned 2nd-Team All-Conference honors. While Dietrich has set lofty personal goals for his junior and senior seasons, he is equally keen to help grow MSA’s running program.

“My team goals are to help build a foundation that will last after my time at Miller is over and will see the XC and track teams go on to become successful,” remarked Dietrich.

The cross-country team at MSA is one with an impressive history of success. Between 2003 and 2017, the team won six VIC Championships and placed top-3 in VISAA State Championships five times.

Now, with motivated runners like Dietrich, the team is positioned to return being a highly competitive force in the VISAA.

While success in races is one goal, Dietrich sees that running provides athletes with much more than PR’s and trophies. “Running and racing have taught me that no matter what your circumstances are, whether you have all the support or no support, you have to embrace the pain and push yourself. You are the only person who can make yourself better. Do that extra mile, that extra lap, train on the weekends, and do what it takes to get better. You may not be the best, but as long as you push yourself, you can be your best. Running is about becoming better and realizing what you can achieve,” said Dietrich.

Dietrich has had help pushing his limits from a new crop of motivated and talented runners at MSA. The cross-country team has stampeded back into the VIC and BRAC racing scene. In the spring of 2023, they expanded the running season with the addition of a track & field team.

The team spends countless hours logging miles together on the iconic gravel roads that surround campus. They soak in the views of the Blue Ridge Mountains on Dick Woods road while doing long 8-mile workouts. They push themselves on hill intervals in the upper meadow gazing down on the school’s farm. They enjoy the solitude of campus trails leaping over rocks and roots before relaxing in the lake on rest days. As Dietrich knows well, there is beauty in running that is provided by the simplicity of the sport and the joy of pushing oneself when no one is watching.

The Mavericks are running back onto the cross-country scene and enjoying every stride along the way.