Sophomore Sasha Kheyfets placed 7th at the OHSAA Regional Cross Country Championships on Oct. 28 in Boardman, sending her to the Division II State Championships.

Kheyfets’ 5k time at regionals was 19.30. In her first race this season, she ran a 5k in 20.35. She credits her time improvement to new coaching strategies and warm-up exercises.

The last Bison runner who advanced to the state tournament was Leah Roter, who brought home a state title in 2016.

As a sophomore on a girls team of only three, Kheyfets  has overcome great odds to qualify for the state tournament. Additionally, she had to recover from an injury and missed training last season.

“I got injured last season and it cut [my season]  short, so I had to come back from that,” she said.

Sasha’s goal at the state tournament is to improve her time and to get better for next season. 

“I don’t care about place,” she said. “I want to improve my time as much as I can. I want to get under 19 minutes.” 

The state championship takes place at Fortress Obetz and Memorial Park on Saturday Nov. 4 in Obetz, Ohio.