Cross Country’s last meet of the season took place on Wednesday, October 8th, and as the season comes to an end, athletes now take time to reflect on not only their personal performance, but their overall performance as a team.
Cross Country has participated in a total of five meets this season, each one providing a different experience for the runners. Some lifted their spirits with success, while others didn’t exactly have the same effect.
“We have this one really horrible meet called the McNeil Invitational.” Senior Gabrielle Bartlett said. “And that one always is really bad because it [takes place] right when it’s still really hot, and there’s a lot of people showing up so we end up running pretty much all day long.”
Despite the difficult task of racing uphill in 90 degree weather, runners made the best out of other aspects of the season. Between practices, dinners, and more successful meets, athletes were able to connect further as a team and help encourage each other in the face of challenges.
“Something that me and my teammates do to prepare for meets are team dinners,” Junior Victor Monroy said. “We have someone [to] host and they cook pasta which is like carb-loading before a meet. And those are really fun because [there’s] team bonding and something crazy always happens.”
Cross Country’s success this season, in which many athletes were able to run their new personal record, was fueled by many things. Not only the students personal motives, but having collective ambition to drive them towards their goals.
“Last year, we ended the cross country season with a sour taste in our mouth,” XC coach Austin Wooten said. “We had some unfortunate injuries at the district meet that caused us to miss out on moving on to the regional meet. The kids have been talking about that since last year and I think it has really pushed them this season to work as hard as they have.”
Overall, the Cross Country season has been a show of dedication from each of the runners, where they had the opportunity to show off all of their hard work, build connections, and improve their skill for the seasons to come.
