As the reigning conference champions, the XC teams have a lot of pressure on them to preform just as well as last year.

A key component in conference championship team is team collaboration. Senior Reghan Flores says that if everyone is working together, then the team can do well again.

“I definitely think this year’s team is a lot closer. We are very encouraging of each other. We push each other past our limits so we can get faster and improve as a team,” Flores said. “It’s all about team unity, and that’s what we’re striving to do this season.”

Repeating conference champions is a difficult task that not many teams achieve. Senior Benjamin Hayes doesn’t know if the team is able to repeat because it is a tough thing to do. However, fellow teammate Erin Spreen, senior thinks that the new team members will help them a lot in having a successful season.

“We have a lot of new, strong team members this year that are going to contribute,” Spreen said.

Coach Patrick Marshall also believes that new teammates are going to help both teams repeat.

“I think the depth of both teams is this year’s strength. We have a lot of new runners that have started to contribute to our team’s success so far.”

For instance, at the second home  Tri-Meet versus Rolesville and Knightdale Oct. 3, freshman Isabella Frey ran a time of 20 : 35. 0 acquiring first place.  A few places behind her fellow freshman, Taylor Bell finished with a time of 23 : 21 : 0.

In the boys’ division, sophomore Lucas Rorick took second place with a time of 18 : 46. 2. Earning fifth place, sophomore Jude Wilkinson got a time of 19 : 23. 0.

Both the girls’ and boys’ teams took first place, paving the way for a conference repeat.

Last Tuesday’s race Sept. 24 ended with a similar win for the girls’ team.

Flores said, “We pushed ourselves. I got to see people finish at the end and they sprinted. They didn’t give up and that was the most important thing.”