When Tessa Buswell started her final kick with 120 meters remaining in the State Championship 800-meters Saturday, she did something she always does.
But this time the Poway High senior felt stronger than ever before.
“I always kick the final 120 meters,” said Buswell, who will head off to BYU in the fall. “It felt natural when I surged but no one went with me.
“When the announcer said ‘it looks like Tessa Buswell will win this one,’ I knew I had it won. I never felt any pain, I just felt good.”
Buswell not only won the state title at Buchanan High in Clovis, she even surprised herself when she heard the time — a section record 2:06.51.
“I heard the time before I saw it on the scoreboard and immediately realized I had not only accomplished my goal of winning the state championship, I had also achieved another goal of getting the section record (Del Norte’s Hannah Riggins ran 2:06.69 last year). It was like the cherry on top of the cake.
“But it really didn’t hit me that I was the state champion until I stepped up on the victory stand and they announced my name last. I’d been on the victory before, but I was never the last name they mentioned. I heard the announcement and the reaction of the crowd — that was the highlight.”
She quickly corrected herself.
“That and winning four straight section championships,” said Buswell, who celebrated that accomplishment a week earlier in the section championships at Mt. Carmel by inadvertently raising four fingers skyward.
Mind you, standing on the victory stand at state was nothing new.
Her freshman year, the state meet was canceled by COVID but they held a mini-state meet in Arcadia, where she placed sixth. A year later, back in Clovis, she was fifth before placing third last year.
“The first two years were strategy-learning experiences,” said Buswell. “I knew I belonged there but the other runners in this state are so fast, I didn’t really give myself a chance to win. I was just learning how to race.
“My junior year I got serious. Sure, I lost but it was different because when you lose to the best in the nation by a second or less, and not get blown away, then I knew I could trust myself heading into this year.”
Even then, she placed third in the Arcadia Invitational. Not to worry.
“No one really cares if you set a meet record at the Bronco Invitational early in the year,” she said. “I trusted my coaches who have taught me to peak in May, so I wasn’t worried early-on.
“It’s what you do in Clovis that counts.”
Mind you, Buswell put in a hard cross country season, to which she credits having that tremendous surge over the final 120 meters.
Things fell into place perfectly for her Saturday as she went out with the leaders but let others do the work up front.
Another veteran, JSerra’s Georgia DeJeanneret, led with 200 meters remaining but Buswell powered past her at that 120-meter mark and pulled away with Carlsbad junior Makenna Herbst finishing second in 2:07.23 and another local runner, Kaitlyn Arciaga of Westview, placing fourth in 2:08.80.
She’ll compete Thursday night in the HOKA Festival of Miles in St. Louis where she’ll face national runners who are all under 2:10, in hopes of lowering that section record even more.
“Winning at state normally is great way to end your season,” said Buswell, who is also thinking of running in the Nike Nationals. “That is the biggest stage you can compete at and to win after trying for four years is really rewarding.
“Everything else is gravy.”
