Full Circle: The latest guest on our MileSplit Ohio podcast series was Dustin Horter.
Horter, a 2018 graduate of Lakota East, was a multiple time state champion across all seasons (OATCCC indoor and OHSAA XC and outdoor) during his high school tenure with the Thunderhawks program.
While it's admittedly difficult and highly subjective to compare athletes on a year-over-year basis and even more so among different eras in time, Horter unquestionably ranks within the short-list of all time greats when considering XC prowess and distance track pedigree on the men's side at the Ohio scholastic level.
He was a back-to-back state champion in Division I cross country (2016-17) and in the 1600 (both indoor and outdoor) in 2017-18. Horter also made multiple trips to NXN and was a factor on the national landscape in the form of winning the 1-mile at New Balance Nationals Indoor and Brooks PR in what was a banner year in 2018.
He tested himself on the summer circuit, as well, securing the 1500m title at the 2015 AAU Junior Olympic Games.
Additionally, he won Ohio XC Gatorade Player of the Year honors in 2017, he represented the USA at the 2017 Great Edinburgh XC Championships at the revered Holyrood Park course in Scotland and his name remains etched at the top of the OHSAA all-time record book for the 1600 meter run via his 4:03.40 official F.A.T. mark en route to the 1-mile at the Mason Invitational in 2018.
Suffice to say, Horter delivered a legendary high school career.
(Dustin Horter and Conant Smith attack the finishing sequence at Division I State in 2017 at the National Trail Raceway in one of the most entertaining conclusions to the Cross Country Championships over the years)
Photo Credit: Shawn Conlon/MileSplit
From there he took his talents to Bloomington for NCAA competition at Indiana University, where he spent the majority of his college tenure. Horter then closed up shop on the college front at the University of Kentucky, where he pursued graduate studies and competed only sparingly for the Wildcats while he, unfortunately, battled a number of lingering injuries.
We welcomed Horter onto the program to take a deep dive down memory lane and to highlight the latest development on his personal journey. He's recently been named Assistant Athletic Director where it all started, at his alma mater of Lakota East.
Drilling down on details regarding his high school experience, what athletes, state-side and abroad, brought out the best in his game, his NCAA stops in Bloomington and Lexington and where his current running related goals reside are just a sample of the many topics covered in our feature video interview located above.
Accompanying Links:
Interview Time Stamps
- 0:00 -- Episode Introduction
- 0:45 -- Why work within athletics administration was appealing
- 3:35 -- Utilizing the messages learned from the great coaches in his history to apply to the work in athletics administration
- 6:45 -- Talking full circle moment of now working at his alma mater plus his excitement heading into the new opportunity
- 8:50 -- Highlighting the coaching philosophy he abided by during his coaching tenure at Lakota East last year
- 11:20 -- How to uplift athletes of all skill levels and helping them to maximize their own potential
- 15:10 -- Recalling some of the athletes who brought out the best in him during high school competition
- 19:00 -- Commenting on the progression distance running at the high school level over the past several years
- 22:40 -- His perspective on the NCAA stops at Indiana University and the University of Kentucky
- 27:35 -- How he's connected to the sport at this stage and if there's any desire to revisit the sport in a competitive capacity
- 29:50 -- Talking about the importance of servicing athletes from all of the various sports at Lakota East, not just those that he participated in as a high school runner
- 34:00 -- Episode Conclusion
(From the Vault: Horter shown contesting the GMC Championships during his senior year)
Photo Credit: Shawn Conlon/MileSplit
