All sports teams deal with turnover. What’s most important each year isn’t who leaves, but who joins. Three freshmen played a key role to the teams success, while seniors Marcus Rodholm and Jake Bartlett took the lead roles and juniors Oliver Bell and Sam Weiss made up a strong middle pack.

The valuable group of freshmen showed potential for more improvement from the very first meet. Early on, leading the freshman was James Kilroy who ran under 20 minutes at the Cougar Classic. Then he caught strep throat and it looked as if the team may not be able to do as well as they wanted at the league championship.

The team came to an awareness of this and stayed as a tight pack, pushing one another throughout the last part of the season, during practice and especially during meets. Freshman Bryce VanDerveer, and Bell and Weiss all broke 20 minutes before the league meet.

At league, Bartlett, Vanderveer, Bell and Weiss stayed in a 30-second pack. Rodholm proved himself as one of best runners in Manitou history finishing sixth at league, tenth at Regionals, and thirteenth at state.

As a team, the boys placed fourth at league and seventh at regionals, and with the return of so many runners, they may have a strong bid at state next year.

By Sam Weiss

*For full coverage of Cross Country, you can buy a yearbook from Mr. Hilt, Room 12.