Members of the cross country teams and cross country head coach Erica Cascio pose at the 2023 Fall Media Day on Oct. 12. Boys varsity cross country runner Torin Trotter, a sophomore, felt that team leadership throughout the season was strong, something he credits to boys varsity cross country captain Beck Wolf-Hardy, a senior. “Honestly, Beck’s so good at what he does with leadership that he kind of takes control over the team whenever we’re getting out of hand. I think we did pretty well with maturity, staying in the zone,” Trotter said. Photo by Aza Khan
The boys varsity cross country team has valued its leaders throughout the season.
The boys varsity cross country team placed third in the State 8-AAAAA Championships on Nov. 4. However, it wasn’t just their running that made the season memorable for the athletes.
According to boys varsity cross country runner Noah Kilpatrick, a sophomore, there was a positive team atmosphere among the athletes, something he partially credits to boys varsity cross country captain Beck Wolf-Hardy, a senior.
“Beck Wolf-Hardy, he’s a senior and he’s great. He brings (things to practice), like a speaker. He comes with us to all our meets, even though he’s injured,” Kilpatrick said. “(He) gives motivational pep talks, like last week, he called us out on a Sunday and was like motivational pep talk time. So he just (had) a lot of stuff to pump us up and get us ready for meets.”
“(Wolf-Hardy) gives motivational pep talks, like last week, he called us out on a Sunday and was like motivational pep talk time. So he just (had) a lot of stuff to pump us up and get us ready for meets.”
— Noah Kilpatrick,
boys varsity cross country runner and sophomore
Aside from Wolf-Hardy, Kilpatrick feels that boys varsity cross country co-captain Ryan Marshall, a junior, provides a good balance of leadership for the team.
“Ryan is co-captain, (which) works well because Beck can’t go with us on our runs, so Ryan kind of leads because we’re all out and about in the city,” Kilpatrick said. “It’s nice to have two people working.”
While the end of the season with State Championships means a change in leadership, boys varsity cross country runner Torin Trotter, a sophomore, feels that the team will still be able to thrive next year.
“Ryan’s a great captain. He’s been very good for us on the runs, getting us in check for sure. He’s definitely one of the more mature runners on the team,” Trotter said. “We’ve got a lot of sophomores coming up, but, also, we’re gonna be able to handle that more. We’re gonna mature over the next couple of years. I think we’re gonna be just fine next year because we’re going to be juniors and seniors next year.”
