Dearing to lace up running shoes for Chattanooga
Like many athletes who start participating in cross country in high school, Hannah Dearing probably wasn’t too sure what to expect from the sport when she first laced up her running shoes.
She certainly wasn’t expecting it to lead to college, but that’s exactly what has happened for the Lafayette senior, who recently signed a letter of intent to run cross country and track for the hometown Chattanooga Mocs.
“It feels great,” she said. “I really didn’t expect it at the beginning of the season, but it turned out be a dream come true. This past season started out really well, but then I got injured in the middle of it. Still, something good came out of it.”
A track athlete who didn’t start running cross country until her sophomore year, Dearing’s times that first season were still good enough to earn a place on the Catoosa-walker County Dream Team honorable mention list. But bitten the running bug, Dearing increased her workload in the offseason, which paid big dividends the following year.
As a junior, Dearing became the Lady Ramblers’ top runner, averaging 25:42 for the season. She finished second at the Walker County Championships, earned a top 20 finish at the Region 6-AAAA Championships and went on to garner first team Dream Team status.
This past season, she began the season with two races under 24 minutes, including a season-best 23:39 at a race at Heritage. An injury later in the season would hamper her the rest of the year, but Dearing showed her competitive nature by gutting out finishes for her team in two late-season meets, including the region championships.
“She gave it her all and ended up falling in love with the sport,” Lafayette head coach Chris O’neil said. “Having only been running for three years, it’s amazing how far she has come and to see (how much) potential that she has. I’m so glad that Coach (Andy) Meyer at UTC saw the potential in Hannah that I get to see on a daily basis.
“She has been the rock of our girls’ team for the last three years. She has consistently been the hardest worker on the team, always going above and beyond to do everything asked of her and more. She’s a wonderful teammate, always exhibits great sportsmanship and is a shining example of what it means to be a Lafayette Rambler.”
“I really like the (UTC) campus,” she continued. “It’s right downtown and close to everything. You can run basically anywhere and you don’t even need a car. I also really like (Chattanooga) Coach Meyer. He’s a nice man.”
She said she plans to help her new team by working hard to improve her times.
“I’m also going to bring a good attitude,” she added. “I really want to have a positive influence towards the team in everything that I do for them.”
O’neil added that UTC was getting a true runner and a true student-athlete.
“She’s willing to put in the time and miles it takes to be fast,” he added. “She puts the time in at the gym and cross-training on the bike and in the pool. She also has an important attribute that one must have to be a great runner — the willingness to hurt. She takes her diet seriously and she’s also committed inside the classroom.”
Dearing plans to study physical therapy while at Chattanooga.