Girls XC win regionals; Teams move on

     On Nov. 3, eight boys and eight girls traveled two hours to Cambridge to run in regionals.

     The girls finished first, with sophomore Eden Hussung leading for NH in eighth with a time of 20:56. Right behind her was junior Ava Carberry with a 20:58. Next, was senior captain Finley Lavin coming in eleventh place at 21:05.

     The boys finished fourth, with junior captain  James Ortt leading for the boys in second overall with a time of 16:51. Next was junior Austin Parry, who placed sixth and finished at 17:20. Following him was sophomore Justin Collins, who placed 25th and got a 19:23.

     Freshman Kendall Chandler says “the strength that each of us showed at regionals was truly a testament to how hard we worked and it was really awesome to see a season’s worth of work pay off.”

     Carberry was happy with the team’s performance. “We all tried our hardest and it paid off because girls got first for regionals and boys got fourth,” she explains.

     “At regionals, both teams placed extremely well, keeping high expectations,” Ortt says.

     On Nov. 12, the team went to Hereford High for their second and final race at Bull Run. The girls placed fifth overall, with Chandler in 21st, finishing at 22:35. Behind Chandler was Hussung in 30th finishing at 23:16, then junior captain Valentina Angulo, who placed 35th with a 23:35.

     The boys placed 16th overall, Parry leading in 50th place with a 19:23. In second for the team and 105th overall was Ortt with a time of 21:41, followed directly by Collins with a 21:45.

     Chandler is very proud of everyone. “At regionals, the girls knew that we had to push ourselves if we wanted to win and that each of us would have to do our absolute best,” she starts. “The pressure was really high and I was super nervous and I fell on my face in the middle of the race, but every single girl on the team ran so well and stepped up that day. It wasn’t just the fact that we won that day that was so cool, but also the fact that even though it was a rough race for me personally, the team came through and did so well!” 

     Senior captain Sierra Weaver was very happy with the season. “I feel great about our regionals placement, it felt good to place first again and I think we all pushed each other to be better,” she says. “I don’t feel bad about our states’ placement, sure we were supposed to make a higher place but I think overall we should be proud of getting what we did.”

     “Cross country is a ridiculously hard sport, but the people on the team are truly the sweetest and most supportive and I’m so grateful for all of them,” Chandler says. “Running is incredibly rewarding and this season was absolutely the best experience I could have ever hoped for.”

     Parry recommends people try cross-country out. “Even though it is hard, it is very rewarding,” he explains.

     “We grew so much throughout the season and I couldn’t be more proud of the season we had,” Chandler says.