It has been a great season for the UHSSE Cross Country team. At conference, we won runners-up for boys and many people ran personal records. Eight of our runners will continue to compete at states next weekend. As the season comes to a close we are looking forward to next season and have achieved many personal goals and goals as a team. We will be losing many seniors this year but hope to gain more runners next year. We wish the best to all of our seniors and hope they continue to enjoy running immensely when they go to college.
One of the best parts of cross country is how we all understand how hard this sport is, the motivation it requires, and how we are all going to cross that finish line together. “The culture of people and how friendly everybody is. The cohesiveness of everybody knowing how hard the sport is and being nice to everybody. I think that’s the best part of it,” said Jethro Ehrlich ’26. The runners are so kind and supportive because we know that any encouragement and support we show each other will help us to not only finish but to finish with everything in us, our heart and soul.
The sport has taught us to trust that if we put in the work then we will eventually achieve our goals and see results. It has given us the patience and determination that we need to keep working toward our goals even when we don’t do as well as we hoped. “I think this sport has made me a tougher and more competitive person in the best way. It has shown me that I need to be patient and that I need to work hard to get the things I want. It has also taught me that I can’t get everything I want even when I put all the time and effort into it,” said Catherine Hockenhull ’25. In cross country, you never know when you’ll achieve your goals and that’s one of the most exciting parts. You put in the work, and effort, and try as hard as possible in hopes that today will be the day you get a personal record or just have a good race. “I love running because you never know what you’re going to get!” said Hockenhull.
Our team is composed of many seniors this year and we wish them the best as they go on to college. I hope they find the same encouragement, community, and contentment as our team has given us. As a team, we strive to be as encouraging and supportive as possible. Even when we are just at practice it’s easy to see how much this sport and this team means to all of us. It’s incredible to find people that you can share this sport with, who love it as much as you do and are willing to dedicate the same time and effort to it. Sometimes it isn’t even the races that matter the most but all of the fun memories we will always have. “I am going to miss the people and the relationships I made the most! I love the coaches and the athletes on this team because they challenge you and support you. I hope that when I run in college I am met with the same enthusiasm and support I have encountered on this team!” said Hockenhull.
This year everyone has seen so much improvement as individuals, and gotten so many personal records. Even with a smaller team, we have continued to progress and make our school proud. “Last year we were a very strong team. I think that this year we are overall weaker due to the loss of seniors. But, for what we have right now we are doing very well,” said Ehrlich. It has been amazing seeing everyone on the team improve and for me to improve as well this season. Even though this season was incredible and filled with so many good races and fun moments, it’s still very bittersweet that the season is already coming to an end. I love being a part of this team and we are all looking forward to running again next year and next season.
