Inside Chase Gilbert’s Outstanding Cross Country Season

Chase Gilbert, captain of the girls cross country team, has had an outstanding season. Ranked number one in Connecticut on Athletic.net, Gilbert continues to elevate her performance through her remarkable work ethic.

Gilbert has shown her athleticism with her incredible times. She set a season record of 17:43.1 minutes in the 5k at the River Valley Invitational, in Cromwell. Additionally, she won States, with a time of 18:29 minutes at Wickham Park. For the three mile race at Shorelines, Gilbert ran 16:32 minutes to win the race. 

Now, Gilbert is transitioning to her next race; New England’s at Wickham park.

“My mindset going into New Englands is definitely to run my own race—not to focus too much on the people around me. I want to enjoy the weather and the course. Wickham Park was a tactical race, but I’m excited to just focus on my own pace and see what I can do there, since it’s the same course as the States Open.”

Gilbert has ten days between the States Open and New Englands to prepare. She is currently focused on her transition. 

“I think it’s really nice that we have about 10 days in between races. It gives time to take a rest day, get a solid workout, have solid mileage, and then use the rest of the days to prep and recover.”

Gilbert prepares strategically for each meet. She has developed routines to prevent injuries in addition to maximizing her form during races. 

“I’ve definitely used my past experiences to develop routines before meets, workouts, and every run. I was injured last year, so I started going to physical therapy to strengthen my problem area—my glute—that I’d been struggling with. Being off last fall helped me figure out what activation exercises I need to do before and after running.”

Gilbert experienced a glute injury her sophomore season and was not able to compete in every meet during the postseason. It is now a priority for her to prevent injuries as much as possible. 

“… my exercises are focused on injury prevention and staying strong in the key muscle groups that support a solid run. I also do plyometrics to activate certain muscles, which helps with being snappy during races – a quick turnover in my legs and improving my form. It’s a routine I’ve stuck to for over a year now, and it’s made a big difference.”

Gilbert is always putting in the work behind the scenes. She is the first there at practice, and the last to leave. She puts in hard work at home as well.

“Doing stuff outside practice and putting effort in that’s required for the day is really important – carrying that mindset after practice. … I run sometimes before school to shake out the legs and get in a little extra mileage.

Gilbert has a very structured routine to help her develop as an athlete at home. 

“When I get home [after practices] I get a quick protein source and carbs and focus on muscle recovery. I’ll go into core or lift once a week… and strengthen my trouble areas, using my massage gun. I try to make sure my dinners have a great balance of everything, that I’m getting carbs for my next workout, protein, and vegetables. 

Gilbert has a great focus on academics as well – she prioritizes both her academics and athletics. 

 “After that [morning run or routine] I focus on the task at hand, which is school —  maximize my study halls and lunches, and when the 2:10 bell rings I’m envisioning practice. Once the bell rings it’s completely athletics.”

As the captain of the girls team, Gilbert acknowledges the importance of the team bond. 

“I’m so proud of how our team did this season… my freshman year when I came into high school, our team was strong, we placed second at Class S States, and the first month of school I found such a sense of belonging. My sophomore year a lot of teammates graduated – we didn’t have enough people to score, and that made me realize how important the team was… Being a team captain this year, my first time, I was just telling myself – I want to create an environment where we’re happy. I’m happy that we had more numbers and we were able to score. Sometimes we didn’t have the five to score – injuries happen. We had a great sense of team and then building on those principles for next season…”

Gilbert has always run. She used to play soccer and lacrosse in middle school. She has since transitioned to cross country and track, and has proved her talent in those sports. 

“I’ve always been into running. I used to do 5Ks with my family and things like that… I’ve always liked running; it’s come naturally to me…After 8th grade, I had to decide, ‘Which sport do I want to focus on, and maybe even pursue in college?’ I had a bit of a breakout season in track that year, so I decided to try cross country in freshman year and did very well. Then, I had to choose between outdoor track and lacrosse. I decided to go with track, which was hard, but it was definitely the right choice… [then] I focused all my energy on running. I have no regrets about that decision.”

Gilbert has expressed her enjoyment of improving herself through her athletics. 

“…it’s a great sport for improving yourself. I think pushing yourself to your limits is such an amazing feeling.”

She also enjoys running on different courses.

“I would say that my favorite course this year was Hammonasset. It was flat – I like to just rip it – there’s something about the flat courses. I felt like that was a great experience… I love Wickham Park, I think that’s my second favorite…”

In addition to her academics and athletics, Gilbert is class president and likes to draw. 

“I do put a lot of my time into running – running is the main thing. Outside of running I like taking leadership positions, I’m class president [Class of 2026] … My freshman year I did intro to drawing  and that was fun…”