Cross country. The sport that when you tell people you play, you’ll get a reaction like, “Wow, I could never.” Yes, cross country can sometimes feel like the last thing you want to do after a long day of school, but none of that matters when you’re on a team as special as Mepham Cross Country. Due to the efforts of head coach Brad Rangall and assistant coaches Jamie Kanner and Jim Batcher, our cross country team is, as always, having an amazing season.
So far, our team has ran at Bethpage State Park, Van Cortlandt Park in New York City and for the first time, Kings Point Park in Great Neck. Many runners have been beating their personal records during races and our team has been beating many other schools, even ones that we don’t usually beat.
When asked about the team, captain Taylor Decina said, “This year’s cross country team is massive; each runner is able to bring something new to the table that we’ve never seen before. The freshmen, in particular, are STACKED this year!! At the end of track last year we didn’t know what to expect for the upcoming cross country season, but we are all happy to see that any expectations we had, have been surpassed. The JV team is looking stronger than ever and the varsity team is gaining new members every day! We have all been able to come together and work towards a common goal: winning the county championship!”
Captain Emily Moehringer said, “So far I think the team is doing really well. Our work ethic is amazing, and everyone on this team puts in 100% effort during training and races. I love how supportive the runners on this team are to each other, and I can’t wait to see the success we have in the future.”
Captain Emily Boccone said, “The things that I automatically think of when talking about our cross country team is the fact that I absolutely love it and also how I’m truly proud of us. Every year we accomplish so much, and I can already see how well we are doing this year. I couldn’t imagine being on another team without these girls and guys, and everything they bring to the team!”
As mentioned, one of the most notable things about our team is how well the freshmen assimilated into the team. Coming from Grand Avenue cross country to Mepham cross country is a very big adjustment. That is not to say that cross country in middle school isn’t difficult, but going from middle school cross country to high school cross country is basically going from running 1.5 miles in a meet to 3.2. Despite the odds against them, this year, we’ve all noticed that the freshmen runners are doing exceptionally well, and we even have some freshmen running varsity races!
All in all, our team is doing great this year, not only in races but in practice as well. Everyone comes to practice and puts their best foot forward even when the run is tough. All of this is shown when we excel in our races. Going forward, I am confident that our team will continue to get better every day and hopefully become the county champs!