Last year, the boys cross country team was  a force to be reckoned with. With last year senior and Stanford recruit Clayton Mendez ‘18, they seemed unstoppable. Mendez, at one point, held the US #2 position in the two mile distance. He got first or second at almost every meet. But now he has graduated and moved on to compete at the collegiate level. Will the boys team still be one to look out for in the absence of their star player?

Senior and standout runner Sam Rivera ‘19 thinks so. While they lost Clay, most of the core members of the varsity team remain and are training harder than ever. Rivera says that the mostly senior varsity has been training for four years or more and they are “ready to show up at state and show that nothing’s changed.In addition to the boys, the girls team has also been running well this season. Historically, the girls team has not made it down state for many years, but this year might break the streak. Senior Ella Behrens ‘19 recently placed in the top 25 at a prestigious state meet (Peoria First to the Finish Invitational). Often times, placing top 25 at a meet like that shows they have great potential to place top 25 at state. Behrens says “I am excited and ready to pave the way for the girl’s team. We have worked hard for a long time to make it to this point.” Both the girls and boys teams should be ones to look out for at the state meet on November 3rd in Peoria, Illinois. Go Dolphins! photo credit Stephanie Dobrin