On Wednesday, September 17, Strath Haven girls and boys cross country teams competed at the fourth Central Athletic League meet at Rose Tree Park in Media.
Rose Tree Park offers competitors a diverse course consisting of varying hills, open plains, and forested areas.
Under a cloudy overcast, sophomores Luca Fantozzi and Colin Kennedy took home second and third-place finishes with times of 17:31.90 and 17:38.70, a time which gave Fantozzi a new personal record.
The overall support for Haven during the race was intense, especially when teammates cheered on their fellow runners during the final stretch.
“I think I did pretty well. I paced this race better than my last race, even though I did not run faster. I tried to keep pace with my teammate, Luca Fantozzi,” Kennedy said.
While the boys team packed up their running shoes and cooled down under Haven’s tent, senior Owen Goldberg shared some behind-the-scenes information about the training and community.
“We’re coming off a hard week of hard workouts, but we push through. We use teamwork… Off-season, we were running every day throughout the summer,” Goldberg said. “This team is definitely one big family. We’re all really close together… Everybody on this team knows everybody and is friends with each other, and we all lift each other up to help us keep going.”
The girls’ race followed with just as much enthusiasm. The boys’ team reciprocated the support they received by joining in on cheers for Strath Haven by the finish line.
During the race, a light drizzle quickly turned into a downpour as freshman Cayla Gaffney set the tone with an outstanding first-place finish of 19:57.30.
Junior Mara Carey set a new personal record of 20:39.60 for the course, and senior Spohie Jackson finished strong as well with a time of 20:42.60, respectively, which earned them 6th and 7th place.
“Cross country’s a really great sport. There’s a lot of camaraderie… I love the team,” Carey said.
The downpour left many people searching for cover as the girls entered the final stretch of their race. Nevertheless, the mentality the girls had while reflecting on the particular weather circumstances of the race was one of determination and positivity.
“I think running in the rain is definitely better than running in the sun because the sun is always constantly heating you up,” senior Ellie Cole said. “It’s [the rain] constantly cooling you down, and I think it’s better to run in… Honestly, I was telling myself if you don’t run fast the rain would be for nothing.”
Before boarding the bus, head coach of the girls team, Bill Coren, gave a powerful reflection on the day’s meet, whilst praising his team’s effort.
“We’re 6-0 undefeated today. We have two weeks [until facing] Radnor for the title…We could be 11-0 and win the league… Our lead girl, the freshman girl [Gaffney], broke 20 minutes. That’s amazing,” Coren said.
The effort that was displayed on Wednesday left the girls’ head coach with a new perspective on the team and what lies ahead.
“I was a little worried, the way we looked last week, we’re looking much better,” Coren said. “We can actually win centrals, we can actually win Delcos,” Coren said.
Strath Haven Cross Country’s next race is at Rose Tree Park on Saturday, September 27, at 1:00 p.m..
