COLORADO SPRINGS — Whether it be on the snow, track or trail, Ella Hagen cannot be stopped.
The Summit senior won her second Class 4A cross country crown on Saturday at the Norris Penrose Event Center, adding to her impressive three-sport trophy case that already features championships in Nordic skate skiing as well as an array of track medals, including the 1,600-meter title.
The CU commit blew away the 4A field with a time of 17 minutes, 30.7 seconds, winning by 47.5 seconds over runner-up Cloe Ruth of Silver Creek. She was ahead by less than a second at the one-mile mark before quickly distancing herself from the field.
“This course is where I’ve kind of become the runner I am, and it’s taught me a lot,” Hagen said. “Today was special, and amazing.
“(Four state titles across three sports) is more than I ever imagined I’d be able to do. All three sports really fuel me. Being able to compete and win in all of them is incredible. They all feed off each other, and it shows what’s possible. I want people to realize you can do everything you love; you don’t necessarily have to pick one or the other. You can have all of it.”
Especially when you are as talented as Hagen, who, if not for Niwot star Addison Ritzenhein (whose Cougars moved up to Class 5A for cross country this fall, but will remain in 4A in track in the spring), would have a third title in cross country and a 3,200-meter title in track.
Hagen lost to Ritzenhein in both those races and also beat the nationally renowned distance runner two seasons ago at 4A state cross country to deal Ritzenhein a rare loss within Colorado.
Summit senior Ella Hagen runs the final stretch en route to her Class 4A title on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, at the 2024 CHSAA state cross country meet at the Norris Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs. (Photo by Kyle Newman, The Denver Post)
Hagen credited her rivalry with Ritzenhein, as well as other runners in a state known for its elite female distance talent, for fueling her success. Ritzenhein continued her running supremacy by cruising to the 5A title on Saturday with a time of 16:54.7 — 27 seconds faster than the runner-up.
“Racing Addie makes me a better human being in general,” Hagen said. “She’s incredible, and she drives me to be the absolute best version I can be because it’s never going to be easy racing her or any of the girls in Colorado. Being a Colorado runner has helped me get to where I am, because there’s always some amazing girls out there to push me, and many of them are my closest friends in many ways.”
Hagen’s athletic genes and family support system also get some credit for her three-sport success.
Her dad, Michael Hagen, is Summit cross country’s head coach and is also the distance coach for the Tigers’ track team. Her mom, Eva Hagen, is a cross country assistant and the school’s Nordic skiing coach. Michael was a triathlete who competed in the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program and is a product of the Olympic Training Center, while Eva is a former competitive trail runner and ski mountaineer.
Add in Hagen’s older brother Luc Hagen, who was an All-American runner at Colorado School of Mines, and the result is an athlete who is a carefully crafted product of her athletic upbringing. Ella says her brother, who is nine years older, “inspired me to be who I am.”
“As a little girl, Ella would run with the Mines team while Luc was there, on their cool-down runs,” recalled Eva Hagen. “So yeah, the natural talent has always been there, but so has the desire to work really hard.”
Hagen’s domination on Saturday served as redemption for the last time she was on Colorado’s big stage when she was severely sick as a junior at last spring’s state track meet at Jeffco Stadium. As a result, she took sixth in the 1,600 and third in the 3,200.
“She was super disappointed at state track and it took motivation and perspective to get here to this point today,” Eva Hagen said. “She got to appreciate that it really is a gift to be healthy and show up at the starting line of a state championship. So today, she was determined to run with joy.”
Hagen did just that, and while she was all smiles after the race, she’s not content with her high school career quite yet.
She has eyes on another skiing title this winter — a sport she didn’t fully do competitively until high school — and then hopes to give Ritzenhein a run for her money in the distance races at next spring’s state track meet.
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There’s also another Nike Cross Nationals to qualify for in a few weeks at Nike Cross Regionals, which would earn her a third appearance at the prestigious meet. She took 10th at nationals last year, which was won by Ritzenhein.
With those big goals in mind, the humble Hagen, who enjoys drawing in her free time, is determined to keep a healthy perspective in a sport that can sometimes feel monotonous and isolating.
“It’s all about finding the joy in it,” Hagen said. “Because whether it be running or Nordic, it’s really hard to do without it.”
Summit’s Ella Hagen, center, is on the medal stand after winning the Class 4A title on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, at the 2024 CHSAA state cross country meet at the Norris Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs. Cloe Ruth, left, finished second while Timnath’s Izzy Schimmelpfennig, right, was third. (Photo by Kyle Newman, The Denver Post)
CHSAA state cross country meet
Norris Penrose Event Center
Distance: 5 kilometers
Saturday
(Click here to view results in mobile)
BOYS
Class 5A
Team results: 1. Niwot 44, 2. Valor Christian 87, 3. Castle View 121, 4. Boulder 158, 5. Mountain Vista 204.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Benjamin Anderson
sr
Mountain Vista
15:09.5
2
Benjamin Adams
so
Mountain Vista
15:25.8
3
Ben Lee
jr
ThunderRidge
15:29.7
4
Ryder Keeton
jr
Niwot
15:32.3
5
Kaeden Dendorfer
sr
Valor Christian
15:33.4
6
Hunter Robbie
jr
Niwot
15:34.0
7
Evan Dann
fr
Castle View
15:38.3
8
Gabriel Marshall
jr
Niwot
15:44.9
9
Griffin Mazeski
jr
Valor Christian
15:45.4
10
Colton White
sr
Grandview
15:46.2
Class 4A
Team results: 1. Thompson Valley 64, 2. Coronado 69, 3. Cheyenne Mountain 83, 4. Eagle Valley 146, 5. Summit 160.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Aiden Le Roux
jr
Cheyenne Mountain
15:02.1
2
Brogan Collins
sr
Cheyenne Mountain
15:18.1
3
Oliver Horton
so
Coronado
15:31.3
4
Tyler Blair
jr
Eagle Valley
15:40.4
5
Dylan Blair
jr
Eagle Valley
15:44.0
6
Noah Thompson
jr
Lewis-Palmer
15:50.8
7
Curtis Smela
sr
Thompson Valley
15:51.6
8
Boston Potts
sr
Coronado
15:51.9
9
Guthrie Manzella
sr
Thompson Valley
15:57.3
10
Josh Shriver
sr
Summit
15:59.0
Class 3A
Team results: 1. Salida 85, 2. Jefferson Academy 116, 3. Banning Lewis Prep 126, 4. The Classical Academy 148, 5. Alamosa 180.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Jackson Fagerlin
sr
Resurrection Christian
16:05.3
2
Matthew Hayden
jr
Frontier Academy
16:07.1
3
Jack Cerullo
sr
Peak to Peak
16:18.9
4
Noah Askew
sr
The Classical Academy
16:25.8
5
Joel Davis
jr
Lamar
16:29.0
6
Aden Garza
sr
Jefferson Academy
16:33.3
7
Ezekiel Wilcox
sr
Salida
16:34.1
8
Jackson Dalleck
sr
Gunnison
16:35.3
9
Rylan Mills
sr
Jefferson Academy
16:36.6
10
Kalid Fanning
sr
Frontier Academy
16:40.1
Class 2A
Team results: 1. Golden View Classical Academy 47, 2. Crested Butte 66, 3. Thomas Maclaren Charter 68, 4.
Loveland Classical 119, 5. SkyView Academy 138.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Andrew Bel
sr
Colorado Springs Christian
15:57.7
2
Biruk Begashaw
sr
Lotus School for Excellence
16:16.3
3
Matthew Start
sr
Monument Academy
16:17.4
4
Ian Reynolds
sr
Denver Christian
16:29.4
5
Shawn Kipchumba
jr
Thomas Maclaren Charter
16:47.4
6
Antheney Herre
so
Loveland Classical
16:53.8
7
Rylan Griffith
so
SkyView Academy
16:55.6
8
Bobby Kiesewetter
sr
Golden View Classical
16:56.8
9
Nick Clark
jr
Soroco
16:57.8
10
James Talbot
sr
Rangely
17:03.7
GIRLS
Class 5A
Team results: 1. Mountain Vista 63, 2. Air Academy 101, 3. Fossil Ridge 108, 4. Chaparral 132, 5. Niwot 160.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Addison Ritzenhein
jr
Niwot
16:54.7
2
Tessa Walter
sr
Air Academy
17:21.7
3
Emily Cohen
jr
Cherry Creek
17:35.0
4
Tatum Berg
sr
Fossil Ridge
17:42.1
5
Keeghan Edwards
sr
Mountain Vista
17:46.8
6
Claire Guiberson
jr
Mountain Vista
17:47.1
7
Chamorra Cooper
so
Air Academy
17:49.2
8
Caroline Fender
jr
Heritage
17:51.0
9
Emry Schwalm
jr
Heritage
17:53.1
10
Rosie Mucharsky
sr
Denver East
17:55.3
Class 4A
Team results: 1. Timnath 98, 2. Battle Mountain 116, 3. Summit 124, 4. Holy Family 147, 5. Cheyenne Mountain 155.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Ella Hagen
sr
Summit
17:30.7
2
Cloe Ruth
sr
Silver Creek
18:18.2
3
Izzy Schimmelpfennig
so
Timnath
18:18.4
4
Griffin Stoughton
fr
Discovery Canyon
18:28.5
5
Raegan Mcrae
so
Cheyenne Mountain
18:54.1
6
Alice Lehnherr
jr
Thompson Valley
19:04.8
7
Eden Demino
fr
Battle Mountain
19:05.7
8
Anabella Descalzo
sr
Holy Family
19:10.9
9
Addison Geraets
jr
Timnath
19:14.1
10
Megan Bader
so
Silver Creek
19:17.6
Class 3A
Team results: 1. The Classical Academy 36, 2. Manitou Springs 83, 3. Salida 108, 4. Banning Lewis Prep 172, 5. Prospect Ridge 213.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Delaney Reuter
so
Eaton
17:26.9
2
Elizabeth Mcquitty
sr
Alamosa
18:21.2
3
Vivian Jack
so
The Classical Academy
18:44.9
4
Ellie Askew
fr
The Classical Academy
18:45.4
5
Alexia Gonzales
sr
Banning Lewis Prep
19:06.6
6
Joy Koole
sr
Resurrection Christian
19:14.3
7
Keyaira Moore
jr
Manitou Springs
19:21.4
8
Chloe Bresnahan
fr
Manitou Springs
19:22.0
9
Elisa Karr
so
Manitou Springs
19:24.5
10
Austin Cook
jr
Telluride
19:38.2
Class 2A
Team results: 1. Heritage Christian 25, 2. Lake County 54, 3. Ridgway 65, 4. North Fork 103, 5. Denver Christian 105.
Place
Runner
Yr.
School
Time
1
Taya Wren
so
Rangely
19:02.5
2
Saskia Marlin
so
North Fork
19:36.8
3
Mikaela Kendall
jr
Heritage Christian
19:52.1
4
Lilly Lukens
sr
Heritage Christian
20:04.3
5
Brooklyn Minihane
so
Colorado Springs Christian
20:05.0
6
Natasha Hessler
fr
Ridgway
20:05.8
7
Ariel Hessler
fr
Ridgway
20:07.5
8
Addison Jones
jr
Wray
20:14.3
9
Amika Begin
so
Nederland
20:15.3
10
Emma Lukens
so
Heritage Christian
20:22.0
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