Niwot High School's Addison Ritzenhein named Gatorade National Girls Cross Country Player of the Year

The vast majority of banners inside Niwot High School's main gym celebrate team championships. A select few, however, are hung in honor of individual achievements.

Coming off a stellar sophomore season on the NHS cross country team, Addison Ritzenhein will soon have her name immortalized twice. After receiving the Gatorade Colorado Girls Cross Country Player of the Year award on Monday, the state championship-winning runner earned the prestigious Gatorade National Girls Cross Country Player of the Year award on Tuesday.

An unknowing Ritzenhein was plucked from her Spanish class by her cross country coach, Kelly Christensen, and taken to the Niwot track where she was presented the Gatorade National Girls Cross Country Player of the Year Award in front of friends, teammates, and family. The award is the top honor in high school sports and recognizes the athlete's achievements both on and off the field.

"I was so surprised being there with my teammates and seeing them so happy," Ritzenhein said. "I honestly thought that it was just a quick local interview for state or something. It was such a big surprise and I'm so grateful."

Ritzenhein became the first Niwot runner to earn the Gatorade National Girls Cross Country Player of the Year award and the second Cougar runner to land the statewide honor, joining two-time winner Elise Cranny (2012-13, 2013-14).

This past fall, Ritzenhein set a new Class 4A state meet record with a time of 17 minutes, 8.2 seconds, about 30 seconds faster than the previous top mark. Her performance also helped Niwot to its sixth straight girls cross country state title. Then, on Dec. 2, Ritzenhein took first at the Nike Cross Nationals in Oregon, crossing the finish line at 17:10.40.

The hefty Gatorade National Girls Cross Country Player of the Year trophy was handed to Ritzenhein by one of her idols, Katelyn Tuohy, who won the national award three times (2017-20) for cross country and once for track. Gatorade flew Tuohy in from North Carolina State to make the presentation.

"It really is a prestigious award," Tuohy said. "Honestly, it's an honor to be able to pass the torch to her (Ritzenhein). Her accolades speak volumes, so it was really cool. She's a special young lady and I know she'll continue to succeed in the future."

Speaking of the award, Ritzenhein shared her gratitude for Niwot cross country head coach Kelly Christensen and her teammates.

"Niwot is such a tight group," Ritzenhein said. "We're all best friends. We hang out outside of practice (and) in school. We really push each other to be better, too."

Ritzenhein is the daughter of Dathan Ritzenhein, a two-time Gatorade Michigan Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year and former University of Colorado Boulder runner, and Kalin Ritzenhein, also a distance runner at the University of Colorado. Dathan Ritzenhein was all smiles as he congratulated his daughter on her latest accomplishment.

"She's a hard worker, she does all the little things, (and) she's really dialed in," Dathan Ritzenhein said. "But also, I think she compartmentalizes things very well, which is good. She works really hard at school and then she goes to practice and works hard there. She then comes home and she checks it out. If it's on her training plan, no matter what it is from coach Kelly, she does it."

In addition to her teammates and coaches, those on hand to witness the presentation included her parents, her grandmother Lori Toedebusch, who flew in from Michigan, St. Vrain Valley School District Superintendent Don Haddad and district Athletic Director Chase McBride, both of whom started their SVVSD careers at Niwot High School, as well as NHS principal Eric Rauschkolb and NHS athletic director Joe Brown.