Mililani’s Kimberly Pugliese says she was thrilled to garner a fifth place finish at the recent girls cross country state championships held at Central Oahu Regional Park. Pugliese was the highest placed finishers among Oahu Interscholastic Association runners.

Pugliese completed the three-mile race in 19:58.10 which was 33 seconds behind winner Dakota Grossman of Maui’s Seabury Hall. That time was a vast improvement over her 20:41.16 clocking at the OIA championships where she placed second. “I’m extremely pleased with my performance at states,” Pugliese said. “I worked hard all of these years at Mililani and it paid off for me in this race. All of these girls are great runners so it was a joy for me to be among the best.”

The senior has competed for Mililani since her freshman year and says running brings happiness in her life. “I really like going outdoors and running through the beautiful scenery of Hawaii,” Pugliese stated. “I spend most of my summer running which was pretty cool. Those months of running helped me relaxed and enjoy life more.”
At last season’s state championships, Pugliese completed the three-mile course in 19:25.85 for fifth. But Pugliese said the CORP course was tougher to run.
 
“There are a lots difficult hills on this course,” Pugliese indicated. “The times were slower, but the competition was stronger. With the race being on Oahu this year, I think everyone was more focus at running their best.”