On Saturday, Nov. 4, the Girls Varsity Cross Country placed first in the IHSA State Championship after months and months of tedious preparation and hard work. This comes as a huge celebration for the girls, as it is their second time placing first in three years, after being beat out by Prospect last year.
“The girls were so ecstatic and in the end relieved,” varsity coach Lauren DeAngelis said. “They came into this season wanting this, and it has been a goal since last year when we placed runners up.”
York ended up scoring 77 points to achieve its victory, leaving the other teams with little room for chance. This did not come too easy though, as the girls have been training intensely since June. When it comes to the preparation, the primary focus seems to be the mindset this season, rather than the running itself.
“We definitely focused on the mental aspects of the sport this season,” senior Michaela Quinn, who placed 12th in the race, said. “You know, every team is physically ready but not everyone is mentally ready, so focusing on that allowed us to become stronger and more confident.”
Prior to this season, mental preparation was not something that the girls focused on intensely, but with the clear evidence that this preparation has had great benefits, the idea of focusing on the mindset will continue to remain in the forefront when it comes to training.
“What put us ahead was overcoming those mental barriers and the idea of working together,” DeAngelis said.
As mentioned before, the idea of teamwork was a dire element in the team’s progress as well. More accurately, the sense of community and family that the team possessed. This provided the girls with a great deal of confidence and unity, which can take some credit for this achievement.
“We focused on being together during our workouts and visualizing the race in order to help our confidence,” senior Katherine Klimek, who placed 11th in the race, said.
After attaining this big win, the girls celebrated with a joyous bus ride filled with music and plenty of ice cream, along with a party in celebration of all their hard work. Additionally, there was a celebratory parade for the team led by police and firemen that went through Elmhurst after the win.
“It’s hard to put into words how special this experience was- not many people can say they did this,” Quinn said.
With all the sacrifices and determination put towards achieving this goal, the girls feel beyond ecstatic and rightfully carry a great amount of pride in their win. With this, they will hopefully continue their winning streak in the near future.
“There has been so much energy and so much excitement going through this team since our win,” Klimek said.
Energy still remains high as the team will compete again this weekend in regionals, where if placed in the top two, they will land a spot in Nationals. With the imposing optimism the team seems to be emitting, their chances are looking pretty good.
“Now it is about trying to maintain these high expectations,” DeAngelis said.
