SARAH BUCHANAN ’16

After school, students often see a certain group of people roaming the plaza and gym lobby wearing unusually short shorts and t-shirts, even on the most miserable Seattle weather days. These people are known at SPXC and spend their afternoons galloping through wooded glens in order to reach a certain amount of time which proves their progression over the season. This season, the boys cross country team was lead by captains Andy Reischling, Louis MacVicar, Aiden Jensen, and Thomas Psyhogeos. Reischling has finished first in many races including the Bellevue Invitational. The varsity team has finished top ten in numerous invitationals and Metro races. One of the highlights of the year has been traveling down to Woodbridge Invitational in Irvine, California where the Panthers competed against top schools in the nation. Junior Frankie Stoner commented on the experience: “The race was challenging but a lot of fun. It was an awesome team bonding time, especially when we visited Newport and Venice beaches.”

The goals for the end of the season are to qualify for districts and battle their way to one of the top six spots to state. The boys have worked very hard to improve every practice and achieve their ultimate goal of attending the State race. Some of the other standout runners for Prep are Matt Lico, Joe Chamberlin, Ben Wagstaff, and Jack Killalea. They hope to lead the team to success in the post season.

The Lady Panthers have also had a successful season and they look forward to cheering on their lone runner in Districts, senior Bridget Keaton. Keaton is one of the four captains for Girl’s SPXC and has shone great leadership throughout the year. Other senior captains include Nora Hendricks, Zoe Skow and Sophia Scheer. These captains have encouraged and lead the team through adversity.

A typical practice for the Girl’s Cross Country team begins with a very entertaining meeting consisting of Coach Mr. Niggemeyer passing words of wisdom to the runners. After race days, girls are able to nominate a fellow teammate to receive a Starburst based on their performance in the race the previous day. After, the team will start their workout. Sometimes, the girls will do team workouts down at Montlake Playfield, running interval drills of various lengths. More often then not, groups will split up and run around Prep. Popular places include Fosters Island and through Montlake neighborhoods. Through these rigorous workouts, the Girl’s Cross Country team has bonded and looked to each other as a family.