Blumm among Athletes of the Year

The fall sports season for Sisters High School produced some unprecedented results, including that the Outlaws were named players of the year in numerous sports, including boys and girls soccer, volleyball, and girls cross-country.

Aria Blumm earned Athlete of the Year honors in cross-country based on her victory at the district meet and a confirmation from the coaches.

In a stellar senior season, Blumm achieved what no other female runner has accomplished for Sisters by placing third in the state meet on the way to the fastest time of her career. And while that time of 19:11 did not officially break the school record for a 5,000-meter course, it is clearly the fastest time an Outlaw has ever run around the fields and trails at Lane Community College's course, which has been the site of the state meet for over 40 years.

Her finish at state earned First Team All-State Honors and qualified her for the prestigious BorderClash race sponsored by Nike, which pits the best Washington runners against the best from Oregon. Blumm did not compete in the meet November 23 due to family obligations and missed the Nike XC Regional meet due to illness, ending her season before she was quite expecting.

"I wasn't quite ready for the season to end, but things just didn't quite work out," she said.

Regardless, Blumm has left her mark on the record books at Sisters High School, which has a long history of state-level runners.

When asked to explain the upswing in her level of competition over the past nine months, she said the biggest change in her training was dedicating herself to morning runs, which she believes paid real dividends.

As she prepares for her final season of high school running in track this spring, Blumm, an honors student, is awaiting word from Occidental College, a member of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference that competes at the NCAA Division III level, regarding admission. The Tigers are rebuilding following a fourth-place finish in the conference, and it appears that Blumm could help make an impact on the young team.