Titan XC Update - Oct 18, 2012

STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
    The Utah State Cross Country Championships are always an incredible show.  1000's of parents, supporters and fans flock the course creating something that looks like a moving mosh pit.  Over 1000 athletes toe the starting line, ready to show that their sacrifices and commitments have not gone for naught.  By the end of the day, most can exit the stadium feeling very good about what they have accomplished.  The 14 Titans who competed, as well as the rest of the TEAM who supported, should have left the stadium satisfied that the months of commitment, training and sacrifice have been worthwhile.  Some may have fallen a little short of some lofty goals, but for the goal of giving a 100% effort, the Titans were 14 for 14.  You can’t improve on that.
    Going into the meet, we realistically hoped for a couple top-10 finishes.  The Lady Titans got things going in grand fashion with a 7th-place finish.  The race got off to an extremely fast start and the Lady Titans were probably a little further back than ideal.  However, they steadily moved up throughout the race and finished strong.  Sharlie Dimick and Bella Williams ran together throughout the race- in fact probably could have just given them one uniform- and finished in the 24th and 25th spots.  They were both timed in 19:43 over the 3.0 mile course.  Those are the #5 and #6 times run by a Lady Titan at State.  Erin Kibler passed several runners over the last 300 meters to finish 42nd in 20:55, achieving her goal of running a sub-21-minute race.  The scene at the finish was a memorable one.  Mallory Ashby had a great race to finish 64th in 21:44.  Adriana McFarland and Maddy Neyts stayed together and ran tough for the entire race finishing 76th and 77th in 22:14 and 22:15.  And in a performance that brought a tear to the eye of the old coach (though he won’t acknowledge it- that’s why he wears sunglasses), Katelyn Davidson ran great to finish 86th in 22:42. 
    The Boys race also got off to a fast start and the Titans again had some ground to make up.  They all ran the 2nd-mile tough and got into the position to “race” with a mile to go.  As has been the case all year, Landon Greenhalgh finished #1 for us in 19th place.  That will make him Third-Team All-State.  His time of 16:19 was the #3 mark run by a Titan on the state course.  Not a bad way to end an XC career for someone who came into the school thinking they were a sprinter.  Parker Greenhalgh and Cody Kelley finished next in 58th and 59th, running 17:27 and 17:28.  The run by Parker was incredible considering the problems he had at region.  Just finishing on his feet would have been good- finishing as our #2 man was great.  And Cody’s performance showed what hard work and 2000 miles in a year can do.  Carson Andreason passed several over the last mile to finish 61st in 17:29, just behind Parker and Cody.  Tom Hill, our only 4-year veteran, completed a great cross country career placing 69th in 17:39.  At the start of the summer, I’m sure that Tom’s goals were not to finish as our #5 runner at State.  Injuries hampered his efforts to reach some more lofty individual goals.  However, his hard work and leadership helped the TEAM achieve a higher level of success that would have been possible without his efforts.  Ryan Andreason (98th, 18:40) and Nate Seffker (99th, 18:43) ran strong races in their first State efforts to round out the scoring. 
    Cross Country is an incredible sport.  It enables every participant the opportunity to reach a level of success as measured by their own standards.  By any standards, Wednesday was a great day for the Titans.  Coaches, athletes, parents and supporters should feel proud of the efforts over the last several months.  There is good news in that we return nine of the 14 athletes who competed at State.  The bad news is that we lose five great seniors who ran at State and five other seniors that were a big part of our success.
    Complete results of all State Championship races can be found at: www.runnercard.com. 

ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
    Not really Athletes of the Week in the race performance sense, but in perseverance.  Lindsey Bailey, Sam Segura, Rachel Markham, Kayla Berryman and Aubrie Jacobsen have been amazing in continuing to show up everyday, support the TEAM, and cross train even though they have been injured and unable to compete for most of the season.  They have made a difference!

SATURDAY RUN
    DON’T STOP NOW!!  Coach Wilcox is putting together a run/breakfast on Antelope Island Saturday.  Meet at the Bridger Bay campground at 8:30 am or at the entry gate to the causeway a little after 8:00 to car pool and save some gas and money.  If you are going, check with Coach Wilcox to see what you can bring to help out with the breakfast.

THANKS
    Monday was another fun evening with the Neyt’s hosting our pre-state dinner.  The food was great and the video (thanks, Stacy) was outstanding. 

TUESDAY
    We will meet Tuesday, October 23rd after school to watch State videos and turn in uniforms.  We will, of course, follow that with a run.  If EVERYONE on the TEAM turns in their uniform at that time, I will foot the bill for all athletes’ banquet cost. 

BANQUET
    We are looking at November 13th, 14th, or 15th for our banquet.  Let me know ASAP of any major conflicts that would necessitate us picking one date over the others.  The banquet will be for all athletes and their parents. 

FOOT LOCKER TRAINING
    Everyone should continue to work out even though the season is over.  Everyone going to Foot Locker MUST continue to train.  We will meet in the hallway between the gyms and take off from there.  No more long speeches from the old.