The goal for Hamilton Southeastern High School senior Nolan Satterfield and his cross country teammates was to win a state championship.
“But by no means are we disappointed with a second-place finish,” Satterfield said. “After a subpar performance last year, we worked very hard all year to come back and make this happen. To get up there and receive the state runner-up trophy was an incredible feeling for all of us, especially us seniors leaving the program on a high note.”
The Royals finished second to Brebeuf Jesuit in the Oct. 30 IHSAA boys state finals in Terre Haute.
“They have an incredible team that was clearly incredibly coached,” Satterfield said of Brebeuf.
Satterfield finished 11th, followed by teammates Garrett Hicks in 17th, Bennett Dubois in 21st and Will Marquardt in 33rd.
“We had as good of a top four as anyone else in the state, and we knew we would by the way we pushed each other in workouts and practice every day,” Satterfield said. “I’m so proud of the other three seniors who showed up big time. Garrett Hicks stepped up big time to get on the podium, Bennett Dubois had a terrific race and earned all-state as well, and Will Marquardt raced exactly how we needed him to, picking off a lot of guys at the finish to secure that runner-up finish.
“And, of course, we cannot forget our fifth guy, Ash Caylor, as a junior to show up with that pressure meant a lot to us seniors.”
Hamilton Southeastern coach Joe Golden said it is a strong senior group with five of the six top runners being seniors. The No. 6 runner was senior was Connor Sarkovics.
“In addition, there were a few seniors just outside this group,” Golden said. “Obviously, they will be missed, and it will be an entirely different varsity team next year. Their confidence and leadership will be hard to replace.”
The Royals finished sixth in the state meet in 2020.
“In 2020, we were a pretty solid team and were shooting for a podium finish, but state meet-level inexperience caught up with us,” Golden said. “But it was that 2020 state meet experience that fueled a dramatic improvement in training, commitment and leadership.
“To get have the top five guys run right near the potential on a specific day, with the pressure of the state meet, was exceptional,” Golden said.
Satterfield said his time of 16:00.8 was not as fast as some of his other races this year because the course was muddy.
“I think what was most important for me was that it was one of the toughest races I’ve had in my high school career,” he said. “Last year’s state meet I felt great the whole time and I felt comfortable getting my ninth-place finish. This year, in a more loaded field, I was sitting in about 13th hurting, but I was able to really push myself and have a very strong kick to be just outside the top 10 again.”
Fishers finished fourth in the state meet. Junior Tate Meaux was the top finisher for Fishers in 24th place.
