By Rich Winter

605 Sports

CHAMBERLAIN — It’s mid October and the Chamberlain High School girls cross-country team is peaking at the right time. 

Led by six-time state qualifier Kinsey Evans, and coming off back-to-back runner-up finishes in the Class A team competition, the Cubs are poised to make some noise at the state meet in Sioux Falls on Oct. 21. 

“I don’t know if people in Class A always think of Chamberlain as a Class A contender,” Evans said. “I feel like the runner-up finishes the last few seasons is kind of making a name for Chamberlain cross-country and gives our team confidence in each other knowing we can count on one another.”

Evans has been a fixture at the Class A state meet for the last six seasons. She’s reached the Class A podium in each of the last six seasons with her highest finishing (fourth) coming as a sophomore in 2021. 

Mother Holly Evans coaches the Chamberlain cross-country teams and says part of her daughter’s success comes from being unafraid to compete.

“Kinsey is a competitor,” Holly Evans said. “She has three older brothers she’s had to compete with and I think her doing well at cross-country is in part just to show those brothers she can.” 

Holly Evans said her daughter started running in third grade and ran under legendary Chamberlain coach Gary Winter as a sixth-grader. The competition took a leap forward the following season when Evans began running varsity as a seventh-grader. 

Kinsey Evans ran smack dab into the ultimate role-model, two-time Class A state champion Ella Byers, who is in her final season of eligibility at the University of South Dakota. 

“I was a seventh grader and I didn’t have the first clue as to how to run a varsity race,” Kinsey Evans said. “Ella was super nice, taught me a lot about the sport and I miss having her around.” 

With all the medals and trophies that Evans has accumulated over the years an eighth-place at the 2022 Class A state meet didn’t sit well for the competitor Evans. 

Coach Holly Evans gives her daughter Kinsey encouragement at a meet earlier this season - Ryan Deal / 605 Sports

“Right after the state track meet I started training with Seth Boomsma and I’ve been improving ever since then,” she said. “I feel like I’m in the best position and am in the best shape of my life.” 

That shape was fully evidenced at the Lennox Invitational on Sept. 28. Competing against Class A contenders from Sioux Falls Christian, Milbank, Vermillion, Dakota Valley and Tea Area, Evans assumed the lead early, never looked back and won the race with a lifetime best of 18:35. 

“Kinsey likes to be out in front if she can,” Holly Evans said. “There was a pack of about seven runners together and Kinsey just took off about 800-meters into the race and just kept building.” 

Evans said the Lennox meet was the best she’d ever felt during a race and the win against that competition gives her confidence heading into the state meet. 

Chamberlain normally competes in a number of small meets in central South Dakota but this year the Cubs have run the gauntlet at some of the toughest meets in the state. The girls ran at the Augie Twilight meet, the Nike Heartland meet, Huron and Lennox. 

“We need to see competition like that,” Holly Evans said. “Our girls are talented, they’ve put in the miles and now it’s just up to them to run the race.” 

Kinsey Evans feels like that schedule has been good for both her and the team. 

“Running against all those great teams has pushed us to know about those teams and what their runners are going to do,” Evans said. “Now we just have to base the state meet off all of those experiences and go out and run our race.” 

Evans has assumed the mantle of leadership this season as a senior. She’s taken several young Cubs runners under her wing and hopes that legacy continues when she’s gone. 

“I tried to become more of a leader this year and want what’s best for everyone,” Evans said. “I want to be a good role model and leave behind an example for those girls to keep putting in the work.”

One of those athletes, seventh-grader Grace Phillips finished third (19:49) at Wednesday’s Region 4A meet in Oacoma

For a high school athlete that has accomplished so much in her sport Wednesday brought something new to the Evans household. For the first time in her six-year career Evans won a region championship (19:09), just ahead of Kimball/White Lake’s Autumn Baker (19:31).