Bishop Hendricken senior Michael Kiernan wasn’t so sure he was going to be a runner upon entering Hendricken as a freshman.

He ran cross country that fall, but played hockey in the winter and baseball in the spring, with the mindset of using cross country to get himself in shape for the latter two sports.

However, it turned out that Kiernan possessed a unique running ability. He ran cross country again in his sophomore year, and when it came time to pick between track in the winter and spring or hockey and baseball, Kiernan chose the track route.

Focusing on just running allowed him to get better and better, drawing interest from colleges.

Now, that decision back in his sophomore year has helped him secure a scholarship going into college.

Kiernan made his commitment to run cross country at Quinnipiac University official on Thursday, signing a National Letter of Intent in Hendricken’s theater.

The Hendricken senior made a verbal commitment back in February, but to put the pen to paper and make it truly official lifted a weight off of Kiernan’s shoulders.

“I’ve been waiting for this, so it’s a great feeling to finally commit officially,” Kiernan said.

Before signing, he acknowledged several people in the audience that helped him in his journey.

He thanked his fellow teammates, particularly the group of seniors, his coaches, Jim Doyle and Dan Brennan, and his family.

“It’s the greatest feeling in the world,” Kiernan said of having those people there for his signing ceremony. “I walked in and saw the PowerPoint that they set up for me and instantly smiled. Then I saw my family and all my friends, and that brought me a lot of joy. It was an honor to do something like this today.”

Kiernan will look to bring his success with the Hawks to the course for the Bobcats.

Kiernan, in his most recent cross country season, ran his way to a 13th-place finish out of 140 runners at the state meet. That finish was good enough to earn him a Second Team All-State nod, while he was also a two-time All-Class selection.

When it came time to make a college decision, Quinnipiac simply felt like the right choice for Kiernan. They have a tight-knit team, much like Hendricken, and he even had a former Hawk assist in showing him the ropes upon his official visit.

“When I took my official visit, [Quinnipiac] was by far my favorite team that I stayed with,” Kiernan said. “I visited three or four schools. There is a kid from Hendricken (Alex Doherty) on the team now, and he served as kind of a big brother figure for me.”

Kiernan potentially had dreams of starring in another sport when arriving at Hendricken, but it’s safe to say that going with running surfaced as the right path for him.

Not only will he run for a Division I school, but he’ll have a prestigious academic opportunity as one of just 60 students who have been admitted into the 3+1 program at the Lenders School of Business.

“I feel really, really good about it,” Kiernan said about his signing. “I’m proud of myself, too.”