Burnet sophomore Hudson Bennett is good at cross country -- really good. He hasn't lost many cross country races in his short career. In fact, the only race he didn't win was last year's McNeil Invite.
Although it seems as everything was up and promising last year, there was a tough time for the young runner. Winning the district and regional meets means you're going to the state meet and it usually means you have a good shot at placing well at the state meet.
Bennett was on his way to doing so, but there was a hiccup to end the season in the manner everyone hopes to end things.
After winning the UIL Region 4 XC Championships, Bennett and his family made the tough decision to forgo the state meet after incurring a slight injury at regionals. Since he was a freshman, playing jeopardy by running injured at the state meet didn't make much sense. With three more opportunities to continue to run and possibly get back to state, they would watch the state meet.
The start of the 2020 season is very different than his freshman year with the adjustments to COVID, but one thing that hasn't changed is his winning ways. Bennett is back to winning and he is winning big. It's early, but through three meets, he is undefeated on the season.
"I want to try to break 16 and go to state and see how it goes."'
- Hudson Bennett, Burnet
He started the year off with a 16:03.44 at the Florence XC Invitational followed by a 16:40.50 at the FEAST Patriot High School Invitational and then 16:42.80 today at the Salado Tenroc HS Invitational. The last two meets have been pretty much solo runs. He won at FEAST by 20 seconds and then at Salado by 37 seconds. "It started out good, I'm getting back into it, I've been running all summer, I feel like it's going to be a really good season," Bennett said.
Bennett is a good athlete and it's easy to see why he is a runner, but the best part of things are his attitude and his approach to things. He could be arrogant, cocky, or haughty after collecting so many wins. On the other hand, he could also be bitter after losing a chance to run at state.
But that's not the case, Bennett is as humble and modest as they come. "I think speed is a big factor that I'm missing right now." Even though he is officially a state meet qualifier, it's like he wasn't and Bennett is as hungry as before to qualify and actually race. "I want to try to break 16 and go to state and see how it goes."
