By Claudia Seravalli

Ah, fall. The leaves are turning as the nights get longer and colder, and the end of fall sports is nigh – Cross Country included. For most of the teams members, the last meet is this Saturday. With one week left, there is much to look back on, as far as highlights and memorable meets go.

For Varsity qualifiers, however, there is still work to be done. Seven from the boys and girls teams, respectively, are in line for the districts meet this Thursday, and State on Oct. 21. Those who have a few more weeks to go are anticipating the final team results of the last varsity meets, but will also miss the good times they had this season.

A few Cross Country members are new to Varsity, either being a freshman or making it to Varsity for the first time in high school. It’s sophomore Tyler Janssen’s first year on Varsity, and he admits the pressure is evident for districts and state.

“This year’s been a lot different,” says Janssen. “Varsity meets have a lot less people competing.” Nervousness aside, he looks back on the season with a positive attitude and high hopes for the team’s results as a whole. His favorite meet was the Harold Scott Invitational, a cold meet where many competitors were able to beat their personal records for the season thus far.

Freshman Morgan Applegarth agrees, and adds that the Kearney meet was another one of her favorites. She expresses the same slight anxiety, saying that being a freshman puts more pressure to perform well. Regardless, she loves the social interaction of the team and the encouraging attitude shared by everyone in Cross Country.

“There’s just so many cool people. It’s been a really good experience,” says Applegarth.

A few of the girls in line for running state include junior Emmie Johnson, freshman Alexis Altmaier, and senior Jackie Osenbaugh. A few of the guys include senior Pierce Tallichet, freshman Linden Weitz, and sophomore Bryce Nitzsche.

Both Janssen and Applegarth believe that the teams in the last few meets, Fremont and Millard West, are formidable opponents. Nonetheless, Varsity members seem optimistic. We can only wait to see how East does in these meets, and have faith that everyone will run fast and stay strong.