The LOHS Cross Country team has had a positive running start to the season. With their season beginning prior to the school year in late August, the team has already competed in several meets at Clackamas Community College, Merriweather, Tillamook and Wilsonville, with several upcoming meets still on the calendar.

Participating on the team is no small commitment, and their frequent practices substantially prepare them for each meet. “We have practice everyday except for Sundays, and we have long runs on Saturdays anywhere between six to 12 miles. I usually run eight [miles],” sophomore Cordelia Megowan said. “We have workouts on Mondays and Wednesdays, and every other day is an easy or long run after school.”

So far, the girls team’s performance has been strong, continuing the legacy from previous years. Megowan continued, “Our girls team has been doing really well, we’ve been winning a lot of meets and beating Lakeridge by quite a bit. Particularly senior Sydney Lim, and juniors Ana Peters and Sofie Howard have been doing really well. The girls team is ranked third in the state, and we want to go to the Nike Cross Regionals.”

In contrast, the boys team’s season has unfortunately “not gone to plan thus far,” said junior Colin Manning. “We’ve had a few injuries which have set us back.”

Senior Maddux Willoughby describes the cross country atmosphere as “very friendly; everyone is welcoming and encouraging, we also have some new coaches this year that are good at pushing us to do better but also recognize when we need to slow it down before races and make sure we get what we need.”

“One of our biggest strengths is our team community and camaraderie,” Manning said in agreement; “the cross country team has always had good connections and we have gotten some great moments with the team our last couple years.”

Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Megowan’s main goal is to “help the team do well,” although the girls team’s overall goal is to win state this year.

As for the boys, Manning’s personal goal is to “try to run under 17 minutes for the 5K”, and “the goal for the team is to try and keep building and bringing more members into the team so we can hopefully compete to make state next year.”

Consisting of approximately 30 people, the team has a strong aspect of community building, and they also partake in pasta feeds before each of their races. “[Cross country] is really fun, and I met a lot of my good friends on the team, so you should join,” Megowan concluded.