FINISHING IN STYLE
When Gabbie Hoots first set foot on the Klein Oak campus as a freshman, she wanted to find a place to belong.
She was interested in continuing her athletic career and ultimately chose to stick with cross country. That decision has paid dividends in a major way for Hoots and the entire Klein Oak program.
After a sensational senior campaign, she is the All-Greater Houston girls runner of the year.
Hoots was the District 15-6A and Region II-6A champion and finished sixth overall at the UIL state championships at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock. She also took third place at the Texas A&M Invitational and Lovejoy Fall Festival and second at the College Park Invitational before hitting her stride in the postseason.
Hoots set a personal record with a time of 17 minutes, 49.20 seconds on the 5,000-meter course at state. Her strong leading performance helped the Panthers finish fifth as a team.
After competing in track this spring, Hoots will graduate and head off to Samford University in Birmingham, Ala. She wants to study education and potentially get into coaching one day.
Q: What was your experience like coming to Klein Oak as a freshman runner?
Hoots: “Coming in as a freshman, I was kind of just looking for something to be involved in. I had done cross country in middle school, and I wasn’t super serious about it, but I enjoyed it. I realized, as a freshman, that I didn’t really have a chance at making a team. I was going to try out for basketball, but then I decided to just stick to cross country. Everyone makes the team, and I knew it would be an easy way to make friends and have fun. But then I soon got pretty serious about it, and I realized that I really enjoyed it.”
Q: What were some of the early challenges you had to work through?
Hoots: “My freshman and sophomore years, it was kind of tough. We had different coaching, and there was no one really in my grade, and a lot of people had quit. We had a very small team, and there was not many people to train with. But I am a very determined person, and I had my goals in mind. I worked hard to achieve those, but it definitely was tough. Last year, with our new coaching — coach (Aaron) Shock, and this year with (assistant) coach (Brittany) Roper — it really helped develop this program.”
Q: What were some of your goals heading into your senior season?
Hoots: “I went into last season with really big goals, but I wasn’t able to perform at the end of the season. I feel like I peaked a little too soon. But then this season, I was really determined. My goal was top 10 at state and to be the region champ and district champs as a team. We really wanted to make it to state as a team this year, and that was our huge goal. That was really exciting to achieve that this year and see all of our hard work pay off.”
Q: What was the key to your success as a team this season?
Hoots: “We had a pretty solid group of runners coming back this year. We didn’t have anyone really graduate from last year from our varsity team. That was great because it put us in a good position for this year. We had a few great freshmen we knew were coming in. Our No. 2 runner (Lydia Butler) is a freshman, and she has really helped us tremendously. From the beginning of the summer, we had practices almost every single day. We really worked hard at pack running and working together as a team. We weren’t focusing on individual goals because that really doesn’t get you anywhere in cross country. It’s so much more satisfying to do well as a team. We worked hard all season and put in the extra time and helped each other out.”
Q: You were the district and regional champion and placed high at state. What did those accolades mean to you?
Hoots: “It definitely meant a lot, especially after some hard postseasons my sophomore and junior years. Especially being a senior and having those hard finishes at the end of the year, it really just gave me more determination to finish it out strong and kind of leave a mark as I’m heading off to college. It just really helped to know where I was going to school. I think that gave me a sense of confidence because it kind of just alleviated some of that stress of trying to prove myself. It was just great to see all of the hard work pay off.”