She is the first-ever female Blue Devil to win the individual State Sectional Championship. She individually qualified for the Meet of Champions in 2024. She was the rookie of the year in 2024. She competed at the New Balance Nationals for SMR, breaking the WHS record. Senior Anna Kylish is etched into WHS history.
Kylish started running for WHS her sophomore year, previously she played soccer and lacrosse. She said, “Running has always been something fun for me. On the soccer and lacrosse field I always stood out running, but I never knew it could be anything more than that. Then I realized it could be my sport.” And that is exactly what it became. Kylish has decided to take her talents to the next level, announcing her commitment to Bucknell University on Dec. 5 via Instagram.
Bucknell University is a private liberal arts college located in Lewisburg, PA. This prestigious school has a 28.9% acceptance rate and contains high-ranked, competitive undergraduate programs.
As for Bucknell University’s athletics, they participate in the NCAA Division I Mid-Atlantic Region, which is a part of the Patriot League. The university’s cross country team had a successful 2024 season placing 4th in the Patriot League Cross Country Championships and 11th at NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals. As for their track and field team, the university has placed consistently high in various events for both their indoor and outdoor seasons.
Kylish said, “When I visited Bucknell, the girls were very nice and welcoming. They reassured me that they had a good balance of school work and running, so it made me less stressed about that aspect. Also, the coach was very welcoming and I know that he can be someone I can talk to if I ever need.”
For the past two years, Kylish and her teammates have had outstanding performances and accomplishments. In 2023, Kylish and her teammates broke the indoor SMP at the New Balance Nationals, won the cross country State Sectional Championship, qualified for the MOC, won the Outdoor Sectional Championship Meet and came in first for the Outdoor Sectional Championship 4×800. Teammate and senior Emily Drennan describes Kylish as “an amazing teammate” who is “friends with anyone, no matter what group they are in. She brings such great energy to the team.”
“I really love the group of girls that this program has brought together. Everyone is always so supportive and understanding of each other and it makes me excited to go to practice every day. At meets, we celebrate our wins and lift each other up when we don’t perform as well as we wanted. The coaches also foster a great sense of belonging for everyone, whether they are brand new to the program or have been around for a few years,” Kylish said.
Head coach Joseph Berardi described Kylish as “a natural athlete” who “moves really well and is very athletic. She is somebody who is willing to talk to anyone on the team and is great with the other girls, especially at the beginning of the season when things are unfamiliar to the new runners. You wish every girl had that ability to connect with people and be a really good person. She is a joy to coach and a joy to have on the team and does all the right stuff. That’s what you look for in an athlete.”
As Kylish enters her final indoor and outdoor track seasons, she hopes to “keep improving [her] times.” Reflecting on Kylish’s career, Berardi said, “She has become more of an aggressive athlete and more confident. If you were to take her from two years ago when she first started to now she is just a different person in that regard.”
Looking forward to college, Kylish said, “I am really excited to see how I can improve at the college level with a higher level of training. Although we have great training and coaches in high school I know when I take it to the next level I am going to be pushed harder and I also will be around great competitors so it will be exciting to see my potential.”
Berardi said, “The talent, the hard work, the confidence. Now they all kind of wed with each other and now you have a special student-athlete, hopefully one of the best to ever come through here. That’s the hope, and I definitely think she is capable of it.”
Kylish has proved herself to be a remarkable and unforgettable WHS athlete. Her dedication and hard work helped mold her into the athlete she has become as she continues to make history for the Blue Devils.
