Freshman Brynn Kartman shattered the high school girls’ cross country record and became the first girl runner in school history to run a 5k race in under 21 minutes.

On Sept. 19, the cross country teams competed at Vinton-Shellsburg, where many runners made considerable improvements. Most notably, however, was Brynn Kartman’s third-place finish in the girls’ varsity race. 

“I asked myself who I thought was tougher: me or a bunch of other random girls,” Kartman said. “It was a rhetorical question because I already knew the answer.” 

Kartman’s determination to beat her competitors helped propel her over the finish line with a time of 20:36, shattering the program’s record of 21:11, which had stood for three years. 

“I’ve been trying to tell her all season that she could,” girls’ coach Jason Guyer said. “It would not surprise me if by the end of the season she’s running fast enough to catch a varsity boy’s spot.” 

Kartman is hoping that by setting the school record she can encourage her teammates and future runners to push themselves. “I’m resetting the standard,” Kartman said.