After going to State two years in a row, the boys cross country team is hoping for a three-peat at the end of this season. They are also aiming for the team to qualify for Nationals again after making it each year since 2022. To make this happen, the team motivates each other on their runs by pushing everyone to their best ability as a way to ensure that everyone is consistent with their training. The boys are pumped to take on rival teams such as Lyons Township, York, and Prospect this season.
“We’ve won State the past two years, we are all trying to three-peat together and we all have goals on where we want to be and we all just keep pushing each other and work out together and it’s a good race mindset,” junior Steve Cox said. “When you run with those people around you it just makes you want to run a little faster, it makes you stay with them; running with a group of people is ten times better than running by yourself and we all do a good job just pushing each other.”
Having a strong team dynamic contributes to the team’s success. Coach John Sipple makes sure the boys have opportunities to bond. The team has outings such as a ‘Beach Day’ and the ‘Run-a-Thon,’ which strengthens the connection between teammates.
“There’s a lot of learning that helps us make progress,” Sipple said. “There’s always a connection from one year to the next and so on and so forth. That tradition, some of that legacy, that the guys leave behind for this current team is picked up by these members. That’s always something that is a tradition, it’s a legacy.”
The team recently lost Grant Schroeder, Owen Kelly, and John Courtney when they graduated this past year. Schroeder got a scholarship to Harvard University for cross country and track.
“So since we lost five of our top seven, it’s been a big change because it’s a lot of younger guys that are stepping up. So we’re just shifting more towards just focusing on the younger guys and making sure they’re up there with us,” senior Philip Cupial said. “Grant is just like, you can’t really replace that, but we have some guys stepping up for sure.”
For all their successes, the team hasn’t been without challenge; pressure from their recent season continues to test their toughness. To test their determination, the boys train almost every day, eat well outside of practice, get good sleep, and bond with each other. Philip Cupial, the team’s top runner, along with the rest of the team, also face other schools coming for their spot.
“The biggest challenge will just be having that target on our back and that our team has such a good reputation. That’s why we’re ranked so high in the national preseason rankings and we’re known,” Cupial said. “So having that target, having all that pressure, it’s a lot for me and the team. Fighting through that, focusing on what we need to focus on is the biggest thing for us and that’s kind of what we really need to pursue.”
The team continues to focus on one goal – placing first. Even with the challenges of losing crucial runners from the year before, the team is going to have an amazing season. Every mile has only sharpened their determination. They’re not just running against the clock, but chasing the vision of coming out on top. For this team, the pressure isn’t something they need to avoid, but something that pushes them to make their goals become a reality.
