Cross country finishes the season strong
Girls place 6th, boys place 9th in sections
Senior captain Erin Brousseau runs in her last sections meet Oct. 14. The girls team placed 6th out of 16 teams.
October 23, 2020
After a season filled with uncertainties and challenges, the cross country teams persevered in their last sections meet. Reflecting on the final cross country meet of the season, senior captain Erin Brousseau was proud of the results.
“Sections went really well. We got 6th as a team, and that might not sound that great, but we run in the conference section with teams like Edina, Minnetonka, Wayzata, some of the nationally-ranked girls cross country teams,” Brousseau said. “Knowing that, I was very happy with how we did.”
Head coach Christopher Nordstrom was content with the outcome of sections for both the boys and the girls, knowing that they were competing against strong teams.
“Our guys ran in the morning, and I felt that they ran one of their best overall races of the year and really competed hard,” Nordstrom said. “For the girls, they were coming off a big conference win the week before, so it was good to come out and see them compete against some of the better teams in the state. I felt like it was a great way to finish off our season.”
According to senior Danny Walsh, the boy’s team achieved their goals, which was a rewarding way to end the season.
“We beat Benilde, which was something we wanted to do, and we beat everyone in our heat,” Walsh said. “It went as good as it could’ve gone, and that was satisfying.”
Brousseau said that teamwork helped everyone feel confident and ready to try their hardest in sections.
“We helped support each other through this meet by reminding each other that we were ready for it at the beginning and that our training has led us to this point,” Brousseau said.
According to Walsh, there was encouragement between the two gendered teams.
“The boys raced in the morning, and the girls raced like five hours later in the afternoon, so some of the boys came back to watch the girls race and to cheer and support,” Walsh said.
Nordstrom said that the team demonstrated alacrity and confidence during sections.
“There were just a lot of positive vibes, and the kids were feeling good and feeling encouraged and feeling confident going into the last race,” Nordstrom said.
Brousseau said that the struggles found in the uncertainties of the season made the team want to work hard for each other.
“People at times were struggling to see what the goal of this season was because we didn’t know what the end would look like,” Brousseau said. “That was something we had to overcome and know that without state, we were doing it for each other and for the team.”
According to Nordstrom, not knowing if sections would be a possibility helped the team become appreciative of each other and the sport.
“We really just focused on one day at a time, that just kept our energy high and helped us be grateful to be there each day which in turn helped us to have a great season with all the other things that were going on,” Nordstrom said.
