By Grace Yurko ’25
On a brisk, sunny Halloween afternoon, the St. Paul’s Cross Country Boys Junior Varsity and Varsity teams closed out a season of rebuilding. The MIAA Championship, held on Tuesday, October 31 at Shawan Downs, featured teams from all 3 conferences. St. Paul’s runners competed in the A Conference, an honor they worked to achieve over several successful seasons. Their variable varsity roster featured only one upperclassman, senior Ethan Schulze (‘24), with the remaining spots going to three freshmen and four sophomores. In fact, Schulze had to fight his way onto the varsity lineup after a disappointing time trial early in the season. This young squad hopes to climb the ranks in upcoming years.
Captained by junior Berkeley Lynch (‘25), the team made consistent progress throughout the season which culminated in several personal best records by four of the top seven runners as well as junior varsity newcomer Henry Scott (‘27). Leading the pack was freshman sensation Souji Miyake who finished with an impressive time of 17:40, beating his previous attempts by 32 seconds and positioning him in fourth place among MIAA freshmen. Ashton Seeman (‘26) delivered a stellar performance by slashing forty seconds from his time to finish at number two for the team, while freshman Max Yurko (‘27) smashed his personal best by 35 seconds to pull up in the number three spot. Rounding out the valiant team effort were Thomas Millis (‘26), Tommy Woelper (‘26), Schulze, and Ryan Graham (‘26).
The grueling requirements of cross country running attract only the toughest of young athletes. The solitary nature of the sport and the challenge of pushing through burning legs and lungs make cross country an extremely mentally and physically challenging sport. Even the strongest runners face the nagging voice inside their head, just before a race or particularly through a tough practice, telling them, “Okay, this is going to hurt!” The steep terrain of St. Paul’s campus makes for some especially brutal conditions but may also give the team an edge. Affectionately named “Stella” and “Sheila” by past runners, two climbs from the athletic fields toward the peak of campus inspire dread in many visiting teams. The team practices rain or shine, putting in extra-long runs on the weekends.
The team competes in the A Conference of the MIAA which means they face incredible competition from extremely talented runners from across Maryland. Nevertheless, the future looks bright for this young crew. In fact, according to data compiled by Athletic.net, when compared to all lower classmen across the state, St. Paul’s ranks 11th of more than 200 teams. Fans should keep an eye on their Cross-Country Crusaders. Hard work and dedication could propel this team to the top positions in their conference in years to come.
Leave a Reply