Taking it to the next level, a look inside Carsyn Koch's freshman year

Carsyn Koch of Cedarville University had an outstanding freshman year on the trails and track that culminated with a runner-up finish in the 800m at the division two national championship meet. Koch a graduate of tiny Washburn High School showed that big time talent can come from anywhere.

Carsyn was a standout in high school winning 4 individual class c state cross-country titles, she was successful on the track as well winning state titles at 100m, 800m, 1600m & high jump.

Koch exploded during the outdoor season running national qualifying times in the 400m, 800m & 1500m. Before the national meet her 400m timed ranked her 12th, while in the 800m she was 4th fastest and the 7th fastest in the 1500m.

We caught up with Koch after her freshman year to talk about her progression, her experience at the outdoor nationals and what lies ahead.


Can you talk about your progression over the entire year starting from XC then to indoor and then outdoor?

Coming in I was definitely intimidated by competing at the collegiate level. I wanted to make sure I would be taken seriously on the team but at the same time I didn’t know quite where I would fit in the lineup. XC was a new training style with a lot of workouts I had never done before. The first obstacle I had to find my way around was the heat. I wasn’t used to running in such hot weather so it was a shock to have my first race literally at a 100 degree heat index. I was able to adapt though, and before I knew it the temperatures were comfortable for racing. I enjoyed the season so much more than I thought I would and I think that can be attributed to such wonderful team members and coaches. Throughout the season I was able to cut off around 40 seconds from my previous 5k PR, a huge improvement for me. Finishing the season, I felt strong and prepared to race well. One of the larger challenges I faced was the transition from a 5k to a 6k. I definitely noticed the extra distance at first but eventually I was able to feel more comfortable and race with more confidence. I always felt like my coach was pushing me hard enough to give me a challenge but never to the point where I couldn’t finish the workout. Ending the season, we didn’t make it to nationals as a team but we’re definitely hopeful for the coming season.

After XC wrapped up, indoor track began soon after. I remember finishing the first workout with some serious disappointment because I felt so slow after switching from long distance to speed workouts. My legs couldn’t remember how to be speedy! Eventually those feelings went away and I was able to contribute to our DMR relay squad by running another PR in the mile leg. During the indoor season, I ran some events that I had never competed in before. I was able to run a 400 as part of the 4x4 team and I also ended up competing in an open 500. That was the first time in my running career that I had ever raced a 400! During indoor I learned how important it is not to get boxed in while racing. I had the privilege to race on a banked track which I thought was really cool and I can proudly say I have run in -18 degree weather. I ended the indoor season with a little bit of a bad taste in my mouth. I wasn’t sure what I was capable of to begin with so I never had the mindset that I could make it to nationals. Towards the end of the season, when I began to believe in myself a little more, I realized that there was a chance I could make it in. I didn’t end up making it, but I don’t regret that too much because it made outdoor that much sweeter. The indoor season seemed to be over before it really had time to begin, but that was fine with me because I would much rather be running outside. I luckily was injury free for the most part, up to this point, but the indoor surface brought out some nagging shin splints.

Outdoor brought some tougher meets and more challenging workouts. Our coach puts more of an emphasis on outdoor so this was the point in my training where all the hard work in the indoor season was coming together. My first outdoor race was the anchor leg in the 4x800 relay where I ran a PR of a 2:11. At the time I thought this was crazy because my goal for the season was a 2:10. Re-evaluating my goals, I raced the open 800 the next day and hit another PR of a 2:09. From here I wasn’t sure what my limit was. I seemed to be getting better at racing but still lacked the abilities to set goals for myself. I continued the season by racing a few open 400s, some 4x400s here and there, and a handful of 1500s. I felt that my best event was the 800 and in the end, it got the most attention. Ending the season, I had nothing but excitement for the races to come

What are a few of the things you can attribute to your success this year?

Coaches, Christ and the determined mindset to never give up. First off, I believe God is behind each and every one of my successes. I don’t know why he has blessed me so much but I know I couldn’t have done it without him. Cedarville has phenomenal coaching staff as well. My coaches have always challenged me, but have never made me feel like I am unable to meet their standards. I attribute a lot of my success to their injury-prevention mindset because I know so many talented athletes that have their careers cut short due to injuries.

This year, unlike any other year in my running career, I have had teammates to push me during workouts and races. I know I couldn’t have performed as well without people to push me. Lastly, and I’m still figuring this out, but it takes a lot of confidence to race well. If you don’t think you can do it, who else matters? In the end, you can defeat yourself in your own head if you let doubt creep in. I had to condition my mind to let the nerves fall away and race with confidence. No one knows how nervous you are if you lead the pack. I attribute my success partly because I decided I wasn’t going to give up. I made my mind up after coming so close to qualifying in indoor that I was going to make it to outdoor. I was successful because I was prepared by successful people and I made up my mind not to give up in any race.


You qualified for outdoor nationals in both the 800m & 1500m, what made you choose to run the 800m?

I qualified for nationals in the 400, 800, and 1500 but I chose the 800 because it is, in my opinion, the most rewarding race. The 400 feels like a race of pure strength: you begin, you die a little, and then you’re on the finish line before you even have time to think.

The 1500 has too much development time. It is a race of strategy where you have enough time to realize you’re dying but not enough time to relax before you have to figure out who can out kick who at the end. To me, the 800 is the perfect race. It is aggressive yet you can’t just push through it with pure anaerobic strength. It isn’t long enough to give you time to think too hard about the pain you’re in, but it’s long enough to tucker you out.

To be a good 800 runner, you have to have the strength of a sprinter with the endurance of a distance runner and just a touch of grit. The 800 is basically a lap of establishing position, followed by a 200, and then all out, whatever you have left till you hit the finish line.

Were you surprised at the level of success you had this spring, did you ever imagine running 2:05 at the beginning of the season?

I had no clue I would be this successful in the spring, or in my freshman year at all. I remember filling out a goals sheet in the beginning of the year and I wrote “Make it to nationals by senior year.” I guess I’ve never really known what my capacity is, I just know that I want to be improving every time I set foot on a track. My goals was to run a 2:10 by the end of the season, but when I ran a 2:09 the first weekend of the outdoor season, I had to set a new goal. My new goal was a 2:06.

Toward the end of the season I ran a 54.6 400, which made me change my goals again. I was hoping to finish the season with a high 2:04 but I was happy with the time I got.


You ran the 400m, 800m & 1500m this spring, what event do you prefer?

The 800m, hands down, however, I like to run a 400 once in a while because I like how fast it feels.


Can you talk about your experience at the national meet, and what was your focus during the prelims?

Nationals was a fantastic experience. The facilities were beautiful and very well-kept. I felt absolutely spoiled the entire time because we were offered so much. My favorite part was being surrounded by people who are elite at what they do. It’s nice to see athletes who have reached that level of competition and are determined to be the best at their event.

Prelims was a scary thing for me. It definitely put a lot of pressure on me because I had never run a prelim before. From the moment I knew I would be competing at nationals, I told myself that if I was going to go all the way out there, I better be coming home with a trophy. I didn’t want to think about placing until I had gotten the prelim out of the way. Everyone knows the 800 is a race where one wrong move can ruin the entire race. I pictured myself falling on the curbing or getting boxed in, or out kicked at the finish line and I was very overwhelmed. I had to slap myself back to reality and remember that I was just as much of a competitor in this as all the other girls were and that I needed to find my confidence. My focus during prelims was to win my heat and try to expend the least amount of energy possible.

In the final, what was your mindset when you toed the line?

What was your race plan and did it go according to plan? The final was worse than the prelims in some ways, but exponentially better in others. I had a goal in my head to finish top 2 and I was determined to succeed. After getting through the prelims, goals felt more achievable because the field of competition got much smaller. It’s worse because the stakes are higher but better because it is already such an honor to have made it to the final round that, at this point, any place is respectable. My race plan was to hang behind the first place girl and see what I had left at the end. It didn’t quite go according to plan, as I ended up leading the race for the first 600 meters of the race. I ran a fairly even race and I finished in the top 2 like I had planned, so I was very happy with the race. Toeing the line is one of the most stressful parts of the race. You feel like a bug under a magnifying glass because the eyes of the entire crowd are on you and 8 other people. We were given 3 minutes to start time once we toed the line and that felt like 3 years. The announcer talked about each of us a little bit but I couldn’t remember a word he said because I was so antsy to start running. I always try to give myself positive self talk when I’m about to race because internally I’m usually feeling very stressed. Toeing the line is the worst.


Your finishing time was another pr, and you finished as national runner-up, what does that do for your confidence heading into next year?

As a runner with minimal experience in comparison to my competition, I have never been super confident when racing. I have surprised myself so much, mostly because I don’t think I gave myself enough credit to begin with. Finishing nationals as the runner-up helped to give me confidence in my abilities and a lot of excitement for next year. I would love to be the national champ next year, but you never know what could happen between now and then. I try to remember to be humble because I know what it feels like to be the underdog and there could be an underdog out there who is prepared to beat me.

Now that you have one year under your belt, what can we look forward to in the future for Carsyn Koch? Next year I would really like to see what I can do in a 1500. I don’t particularly like that race but I think I could grow to like it more, if I was more comfortable racing it. In the indoor season, my DMR team is looking to qualify for nationals and I’m hoping to make it individually in the 800 as well. We are also hoping to qualify as an XC team, which will take a lot of hard work but I think we can do it. As far as outdoor goes, my plan is simply to PR. I want to reach new limits and see just how fast I can get. My goal is to make it to nationals 3 times next year. We’ll see how that goes.


With next year being an Olympic year do you think you can meet the standard to run in the trials?

I think a 2:03 is definitely a possibility in my future. As far as the decision to run in the trials, we’ll see.


Koch's High School Personal Bests

100 Meter Dash 12.91 2013 Outdoor

200 Meter Dash 27.13 2013 Outdoor

800 Meter Run 2:21.30 2012 Outdoor

1,600 Meter Run 5:11.63 2012 Outdoor

High Jump 5-5.5 2014 Outdoor

5,000m CC 19:06.60


College Personal Bests

400 Meter Dash 54.60 2015 Outdoor

500 Meter Dash 1:15.36 2015 Indoor

800 Meter Run 2:05.21 2015 Outdoor

2:15.47 2015 Indoor

1,500 Meter Run 4:24.26 2015 Outdoor

One Mile Run 5:14.76 2015 Indoor

5,000m CC 19:06.90

6,000m CC 22:22.40