Last Saturday, Aug. 31, the SIS cross country team competed in their first-ever meeting of the year at SFS. The team had experienced a lot of growth in the new season, which was good news for the team had lost their ace Paul Moon, graduate from class of 2024, and much of their core varsity runners following the 2023 year. 2024 provided a chance for recovery.

“I think the biggest part of our program that we could be better at is offseason training,” Jennifer Kurbel, cross country coach, said. “I think that’s always been the biggest disconnect. During the season we all push and do a good job, but once the season ends that’s when it all falls apart because not many athletes play other sports. We can’t just go from the intense training we’re doing right now to straight nothing.”

Despite this huge setback, the coaches have high hopes for a strong future for the team. Although the Aug. 31 race was a weak start, there are telltale signs of improvement. Recovery will be harsh but the team is capable of achieving this given the proper training. The time to achieve this change may be long as recent weather conditions such as the intense heat and pouring rain have not made running conditions favorable. Nevertheless, the team has shown both spirit and determination at every practice, ready to improve despite the challenges and struggles ahead.

“I believe that we need to work on developing our younger players, as we consider this year more of a rebuilding season entailing Paul’s absence, ” Joonmo Ahn (11), XC team captain, said. “We need at least 5 reliable runners who can solidly perform in every meet and we need to work on hill conditioning.”

Now the XC team is hoping to prove itself to its rivals once again. They will be competing in another away game on Sept. 7 at OMHS Daegu, with high hopes of achieving personal and school records.