The only senior girl on Middletown High School’s 2021 winter/spring season cross country team, veteran and team captain Erica Kinsel was a stabilizing force for the Mustangs during a most chaotic year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. While nearly all of the Mustang girls were freshmen or sophomores, Kinsel provided steady leadership on a young squad with limited numbers, but one that upheld Middletown’s cross country tradition of performing at high caliber. A steady performer for the Mustangs in cross country and track, Kinsel is the fourth and final finalist for the Record-Bee’s Athlete of the Year award. She joins Clear Lake senior Joy Ingalls, Upper Lake junior Zoey Petrie and Clear Lake freshman Hannah Garrity as finalists. Her next stop is the University of California at Santa Barbara. (Photos by Brian Sumpter)
