By Ava Hutchison

Fall sports are officially back, and the cross country team is sprinting into their season. As the meets continue to get more difficult, Coach Alonna Miller is anticipating a great year for the Wildcat runners.

Currently, the runners are in 4th place within their region, and they have been consistently working to further their chances of moving up in the ranks.

The team is facing its usual challenges, but with the new UIL region, they are facing Highland Park, a school notorious for their sports programs. Coach Miller, however, is optimistic about the team’s chances.

“It will be really tough to advance this year since we picked up Highland Park in our district, but we can still advance if we strategize and run competitively as a team,” Miller expressed.

The addition of the new region is a tough challenge, pushing them to work harder as a team, and continually push themselves in their running. Senior runner and captain Turner Ring is well aware of this challenge.

“Highland Park moving into our district makes competition much more stiff,” Ring said. 

Despite this challenge, the team is still determined to do their best. This school year brought new runners, and while they’re still developing, they are bringing new life to the track.

“Out of our top five fastest runners, most of them are underclassmen,” Ring explained.

Coach Miller agrees that her underclassmen are a good sign for the team.

“I have some very fast freshmen that are keeping our team very competitive on varsity,” Miller said.

The overall goal for the team this year is to advance to regionals in Lubbock, and Miller is cautiously hopeful that they will advance.

“We will need to run our fastest times at the district meet and score as best as we can to get to that next level,” Miller said. 

So far, the team feels good about the races. Scout Gomez, a senior who’s been running for four years, says this year is going great so far.

“The races have been hot, but most of the courses have been really good so far,” Gomez exclaimed.

As the team moves forward with their season, they will need to keep pushing to advance through the ranks, in hopes of getting to regionals, or further. Despite these challenges, the runners are in high spirits, and they are excited for what this cross country season will bring. 

Most of all, Ring and Gomez are excited for the connections and friendships that the season will bring.

“I’m really excited to make a positive impact and connect with the younger members of the team,” Ring expressed.

Gomez agrees, stating how much she loves her team.

“I’m excited to become closer with my fellow cross country teammates and to run for my final year,” Gomez said.

If you want to support our running Wildcats, you can find their schedule, roster, and pictures at the Wildcat Club website