OLD LYME, Conn. (WFSB) - After finishing third as a freshman and junior, Old Lyme High School senior Chase Gilbert finally broke through to win the Connecticut Cross Country State Open this week.

Gilbert, named the Porter and Chester Institute Athlete of the Week, won the race in convincing fashion after missing her sophomore year due to injury.

“It feels so good. It’s kind of relieving in a way, but also, like, I worked really hard for it, and I knew that I deserved to get it,” Gilbert said.

Gilbert trains under Jan Merrill-Morin, who competed in the 1976 Olympics in the 1500-meter race when it was the longest event for female runners. Merrill-Morin won Pan-Am gold in the 3000m in 1979 and the 1500m in 1975, and was a silver medalist at the 1981 World Cross Country Championships in Spa

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