9/23 update

Braves,

What a week. We had a great week of work, mentally and physically, and that was on full display on Friday. Our girls team managed to capture first place, led by Laurie who finished 1^st overall. The beauty of XC is that one runner cannot win the race for the team; it requires the entire team to contribute. Trish and Anna Sophia both finished in the top 15, with Sophia at 24 and Sammi at 41. All 5 had their best race of the year, and nearly all had their fastest paces ever. Sammi battled the last 800m at least with severe breathing difficulties but still managed to power through and have a personal best pace. Her effort was incredible. Although those 5 were the scoring runners, races like that don’t just show up out of nowhere, it requires an immense amount of effort over the long term, and without each member of our team, JV and varsity included, our effort would not have been the same. More important than the results is the way we prepare and approach each day. It is a ton of fun seeing individual and team achievements, and those will come as we compete to be our best each day. That was one win, now let’s go get some more.

There were countless races yesterday that deserve highlighting, including that of Riley who battled harder than we have ever seen to have a 20s per mile improvement. Kohl ran so hard and placed so well in the freshman/sopho race that he made himself sick for the rest of the races. I love watching you all battle every race and leave it all out on the course. It is remarkable how hard you have been working this season, and makes coaching this team a blast. We thank you for your hard work and general desires to do right and get better every day.

There are 3 races left in the season , excluding footlocker for those who want to go, but for most of us there are only 2 races left, as state we are only allowed 7 runners for each team that qualifies. Use every day wisely, enjoy these last few weeks as much as possible, because it will be over before we know it.

This week we race Wednesday at Mills Park (Mosquito park) in Woods Cross. There will not be a bus for this meet, and each of you will need to find a way to get there. The school does not order us a bus for this meet because it is so close to home. This will be the last race to help us determine positions for the region meet.

The team dinner will be at the Tew’s home on Tuesday. Time and location tbd.

Looking forward to getting back to it on Monday as we prepare for region and state.

Coach Jacobson