The cross-country team competed in their first home meet of the year: the ninth annual Concord Invitational. They have all been practicing so much this year to get stronger runners, and their hard work pays off.
First, let’s talk about the girls team. They all did a great job pushing themselves to the best of their abilities. With all that being said, they placed sixth out of ten teams.
Senior runner, Maria Stevens ran a time of 31:45.6. She explains what went well during the meet: “We worked as team and had a lot of fun”
Another important aspect to the girls’ team is senior Gwen Bulko. She worked hard at the meet and ran a time of 25:30.4. She explains that while it was a great day to run, it was also a great team bonding experience. “We supported each other and made sure to push ourselves while also having a lot of fun. We’ve worked hard in practices and know to do our best when we race, but It’s important to remember the community this sport creates which I think was evident when we ran in the open race and cheered on the strangers around us.” Bulko also adds that “while it was just an invitational, this was a great opportunity for all of us to push ourselves and gain experience while also forming bonds.”
Gwen and Maria explain that this year they have been using the words, “Never back down never give up” to help encourage each other along the way.
Now let’s talk about how the boys did. This year, they’ve been working extremely hard because of their small team. They tried their hardest and ended up finishing eleventh out of fourteen teams.
Freshman Keaton Smith explains how his experience was: “I was really nervous about my very first high school cross-country race, but I knew I was going to do well because I had teammates in front of me like Maddox who helped challenge me. We always have fun. I’ve never had a bad experience with this team,” he shares. Smith worked hard during the meet and ran a time of 20:54.6.
The dynamic duo, the Bauman boys, also ran in the home meet. Junior, Lleyton Bauman ran the fastest time out of the Concord boys; with a time of 20:23.1. Lleyton’s younger brother, Liam ran a time of 26:34.5.
Lleton shares his thoughts from the race. “I was very proud with how we ran being a very young team…and with it still being early season along with many injuries. I say we ran well for the shape we are in. I would say that I think everyone has a lot of potential on the team. I think that Keaton ran incredible being a freshman as well.”
Liam explains how the race went for him. “My first Cross Country race at the high school level felt really long; however, I was grateful for my teammates’ who cheered me on and helped me during practice. I was proud of my brother that he pulled the boys’ team along in the race and led the team. It was also nice of him to encourage me after he had finished.”
The team did a great job pushing themselves to the best of their abilities. Come support them tomorrow at their Springport meet!
