Saturday, August 28th - Girls Conference , Boys @ Oyster River
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The girls team demonstrate their newly-learned self-defense moves.
Saturday saw the boys and girls divide for the first time that I can remember, the girls heading to a conference on women’s running and the boys departing to their first meet of the season at Oyster River.
The conference was a huge success, with the team attending various topics such as an elite runner panel discussion, mental health in running, running in college, yoga, nutrition, and every bodies favorite, self-defense. Oh, and the free drinks and snacks!
MV Boys vs Oyster River vs Sanborn - 8/28/21
The cross country season officially kicked off for the MVXC boys after a return to the infamous Demeritt Hill Farm. For the returning runners, warming up on the apple orchard’s gravel roads conjured flashbacks of ambulance sirens and heat exhaustion from two years prior. However, their fears quickly subsided as the clouds provided the perfect amount of cover at race time.
The race got off to a fast start with Mark and Oliver making a gutsy sprint to the front of the pack in an attempt to break up the contingent of Oyster River runners. At the first mile, the boys lost contact with the lead pack but MV’s top 5 still remained in contact with each other. Approaching the second mile marker, Mark continued to lead the boys by powering through a case of the shin splints. Not far behind him was Ryan, harnessing the strength from his two runs up Waterville Valley the week before. Next was Marshall who put on a clinic for pacing. Oliver trailed close behind, determined to limit the number of non-MV jerseys between him and his teammates. Closing out the top 5 was freshman Mychel Reynolds wearing his lucky socks and looking completely in control. Behind him were Trevor, Gage, and Silas running tough and determined on a difficult course.
At the finish, all 8 boys demonstrated phenomenal kicks, with Mark being the first to power down the chute of apple trees. Most notably, a showdown between juniors Marshall and Ryan unveiled their unrelenting speed that would result in Ryan taking the second spot by a hair. Oliver and Mychel would finish the scoring for MV, securing the fourth and fifth spots respectively. Although a wrong turn led freshman Silas to the finishing chute much quicker than expected, he put up a great fight alongside Trevor to take the next two spots for MV. Closing out the boys was freshman Gage who mirrored his teammates with a ferocious kick to the line, finishing his first high school race ever.
Overall, Demeritt Hill Farm provided a perfect learning experience for the team moving forward. As we made our way back to the bus, the boys were unfortunately let down by Coach Walker’s false promise of buying them apple cider donuts. Luckily, Oliver saved the day with two large bags of homemade cookies.