Cross country teams sweep CVC championships

Head Coach James Smirk

“The real secret [to] being great at cross country is understanding that it never really gets easier. You just get better at dealing with it, and then, as such, you’re willing to run faster ... I think that’s something pretty unique in our sport. So our athletes have gotten better and have found themselves in a championship position because they have leaned into that idea that they can continue to find greater depths of ability if they’re willing to commit to those ideas.

Assistant Coach Jennifer Smolyn

“For the girls, the goal is going to be to win the section, because they are talented and ready to go. But for the boys, they’re a little bit more of a wild card. We weren’t expecting them to win the county. They put a really, really great race together. So we’re not totally sure how they’re gonna pan out in the section, but we’re excited.”

Aleric Deess ’28

“I’d say that it’s pretty exhilarating, honestly, especially depending on where you’re passing them. Towards the end of the race, you can see them in front of you [and] you can see that they’re breathing heavy [or] they’re looking down [and] not feeling great. [At that point], you really [start to] feel like you can really win and pass them in this spot.”

Steven Cenci ’26

“We’ve really bonded as a team and done a bunch of workouts together that have strengthened our connections with each other. So when we [got] out there on the course, we [were able to] trust each other and were willing to put it all out there as a team ... I think all four of our coaches ... have been super supportive [and helped] us with our workouts and [gave us] training plans.”