Saturday was a very successful day for the Highlanders.  Even though the course didn't produce the fast times for everyone that it does some years, our team finishes were fantastic.  Both the boys varsity and JV teams finished 3rd.  The girls varsity and JV teams both finished 2nd and Coach Hageman was voted GMC Girls Coach of the Year!  

 

Congrats to the following All-GMC finishers:

First Team

• 12th- EJ Schneider
• 13th- Eric Dew

• 23rd- David Surman
• 25th- Colin Klaserner

 

It seems like a lot of teams around the city are dealing with injury and sickness at the moment.  We certainly have felt these effects as well, but there are ways to minimize setbacks.  Please remember to wash your hands before you eat or touch your face.  If you are sitting next to someone in class who is sick, discreetly ask you teacher to move seats.  Keep up with your nutrition, hydration and sleep.  This is the home stretch, don't ease up now!

 

 

Morgan White- Morgan is a senior and has been running cross country for four years.  The end of this season has been his best finish yet.  Morgan has been very consistent and managed to stay level headed and positive through the season's ups and downs.  His best race of the season happened at the GMC Championships on Saturday.  This season-best effort couldn't have come at a better moment because Morgan's performance sealed the 3rd place finish for the Highlanders.  Oak Hills tied Lakota East, but in cross country team ties are broken by the place of the sixth runner.  Morgan bested East's 6th runner by over 10 seconds!

 

Gavin Craynon- Gavin has been one of the top freshmen on our team this season.  He is a great racer and really does well under pressure.  Gavin ran a new personal best at the GMC Championships and was our top runner in the JV race.  The time he ran placed him as the 5th faster Oak Hills runner of the day!  This effort earned Gavin a spot on varsity for Districts next week.  

 

Those not on varsity will compete at Home of the Brave Park in Loveland on Thursday.  The boys race at 6:10pm.  This will be the last JV meet of the year.  The bus will leave right after school at 3:15pm.  Varsity is no longer riding this bus, they will practice at Oak Hills instead.  We plan to be home around 8pm.  Admission for the meet is $5 per person, but they didn't specify whether they will accept cash, credit or both.  The attached sheet has the roster and more details. 

The top 7 will compete at Voice of America Park (again) on Saturday.  Our race is at 11:00am.  Parking will be difficult for spectators; there are a lot of races at VOA next Saturday.  Please plan to arrive a little earlier than usual.  Spectator tickets can ONLY be purchased online at this link.  All of the District sites in the state will be listed on the ticketing website.  Please make sure you choose Voice of America Park in West Chester.  

 

Even though only the top 7 race on Saturday, we always travel with several alternates during the post season.  These athletes practice and travel as if they are racing, just in case something happens and we need a guy to step in.  We are only allowed to bring 13 guys as team members to the varsity District meet.  Everyone else is welcome to ride the bus, but you will have to pay for your ticket.  The attached sheet has the roster and more details. 

 

There are a few team sponsored events that will take place after the last meet:

• Awards Night- All parents and athletes will gather  to celebrate our season.  On a weekday evening.  Date and time TBD
• Parent Social Event- All parents are invited to hang out for a few hours without kids.  On a Friday evening.  Date and time TBD
• Team Paintball- The team will carpool to Liberty Township to play paintball.  On a weekend.  Date and time TBD