After traveling for over three hours to Fayetteville, Arkansas both the boys and girls cross country teams’ senses were heightened in anticipation of the 37th annual Chile Pepper meet.
Over 114 high schools attended the Oct. 5 meet. The girls varsity team placed 34th, the girls junior varsity team placed 13th, the boys varsity team placed 24th and the boys junior varsity team placed 14th.
Sophomore Sylvie Harper placed eighth overall, also setting a new school record for a girl’s 5k with 17:43. She shared the pre-meet routine.
“The night before the race we had a team meeting, and we gave little motivational speeches, which is my favorite part really showing us as a team,” Harper said.
In addition, senior Luke Worthington placed 35th in the 5k becoming the second fastest male cross country runner in school history with a record of 16:58.
“I was very excited because this was the first time that we were going to go to a race where I felt like I could PR by a lot,” Worthington said.
Boys Cross Country Head Coach John Hamilton expressed his pride in the team.
“I’ve got a really good group of boys, led by nine seniors, in which I feel confident about their leadership skills,” Hamilton said.
Girls Cross Country Head Coach Matthew George felt positive about the preparation that his team did for the season and for state taking place in November.
“Our goal is to win, win the whole thing in November, but our first goal is just to be the best we can be, and we accomplish that every week,” George said.
