With the title of conference champions, regional champions, and being 11th in the state, it’s easy to see that the Boys Cross Country team is a strong one.

The team trains nearly everyday and in nearly any weather and it is strong in many aspects, according to Lukas Troutman, senior captain. But, an aspect that stood out from the rest was their class of 2018 seniors.

“We were very strong as a team overall last year. We had a lot in numbers last year for our senior class, [and] we had some very outstanding seniors [that] were very strong in the way of performance,” Troutman said. “This year it was a bit weaker in those aspects.”

Although suffering the loss of the seniors definitely had an impact on the team, according to Troutman, they’re already working on filling that hole. One way was by promoting training during the off season. This allows all members of the team to attend and improve, so they’re ready for the real season.

“With the performance gap, we worked really hard over the summer and really pushed summer training,” Troutman said. “We really put in the work to make sure we perform at least to the level we did last year.”

This year, the team is also trying to promote unity, according to Troutman. The idea of getting rid of all the little cliques throughout the team is one they really want to pursue. Getting rid of the hierarchy will lead to a deeper connection throughout the team and therefore a stronger team.

“We are trying to develop and bond better as a team, from the slowest guy to the fastest guy,” Ethan Blankenship, sophomore and second year member said.“[This is] so we can work together toward our goals as a team.”

Even though the team worked hard during the off-season, the training program didn’t take a shift. There really was no need, since workouts are specialized for each member of the team.

“The training structures remain the same, but our program training is individualized for each runner,” JB Hanson, head coach, said.  “With a younger, less experienced team,  we have less guys doing higher volumes than last year and more guys doing introductory-level training.”

Even with the loss of the seniors, the team still feels like they’ll be okay. They know they’ll just have to continue working hard.

“We still have a ways to go before the end of the season, but I know we have it within us,” said Blankenship. “We really just have to believe in ourselves.”