By Justin Hsieh, News Editor
Saturday morning, the boys’ cross country team made their official season debut at the two-mile Fastback Invitational in Arcadia. With strong pack placement and several key frontrunners, the boys gave a promising performance for their upcoming season.
The Barons first took to the line for the senior race at 7:40 a.m. Although the small group of seniors fell slightly short of their expectations, Kyle Meis managed to place 55th and finish the race in 10:47, the team’s fastest time of the day.
“I feel that my performance was not the best today,” said Meis. “However, my downfalls throughout the race give me more motivation for the rest of the season and to fix myself in certain areas that need improvement.”
In the Barons’ second race, juniors Justin Hsieh, Dezi Hernandez, Ethan Lam and Michael Mockus led the group, with the four runners crossing the finish line within a span of eight seconds (10:56-11:02). All four placed in the top 70. The race also saw notable performances from Ben Nguyen and Samson Le, who set personal records (PRs) for the distance.
“I think the team overall did great,” said Lam. “We got off a good start to the season, and the team is gelling very well together.”
The sophomore race saw a standout performance from Shane Hill, who in his first official cross country race placed in the top 30 with a time of 11:05. Hill was followed by Asher Bradshaw, Abraham Morales and Kotaro Ito, who constituted a three-man pack that finished within a span of 15 seconds (11:29-11:42). All four runners placed in the top 70.
“I feel very accomplished for [earning a medal by placing in the top 60] today, but I always feel like there’s room where I could’ve improved,” said Hill. “[But] overall I feel as ready as I’ll ever be for this season and I have confidence for my team’s performance just as much as for myself.”
The Barons concluded the day with the freshman boys’ race, where Luke Dias and Benjamin Prado led with respective times of 11:39 and 11:43 and both placed in the top 40. Dias and Prado were followed by a pack of seven teammates who finished with an average gap of 7 seconds between each runner, an impressive cohesion for a freshman race.
“It was a great experience and it helps me to see where I’m at in this point of the season,” said Prado. “I think the team support was great. I know we’re going to do well because we have trained hard over the summer. I plan to keep learning from each race.”
Overall, the Barons gave an auspicious opening to their season Saturday. Despite the absence of several key runners, including juniors Jaden Nguyen and Hunter Augustus and sophomore Jonathan D’Ambrosio, the team showed potential for strong future performances across all divisions.
“The team has gotten significantly better and is stronger than it has been, with an especially big pack in the freshman race,” said Hernandez, one of the team captains. “I was really happy to see everyone stick with each other… I was also very happy about our sophomores as well; they are improving and will be great leaders in the times to come.”
