With several invitational meets under their belts, Albany High School Cross Country is up and running, and the teams are forming opinions about their potential this year.
This year the Cougars were faced with many changes, including the addition of new coach Craig Stern, who junior Tavi Kessler calls “encouraging, supportive, and talented.”
At graduation last year, the team was sorry to say goodbye to Boys’ Varsity captain Brian Shea, who junior Corwin Shiu describes as being “good at pep-talks,” and Girls’ Varsity runner Abby Ridley-Kerr. The team has clearly adapted well to these changes, and, according to Shiu, performed as expected in the two-mile Ed Sias Invitational, which took place on Saturday, September 13th.
Armed with seniors Chris Gioia and James Pickering and junior Aidan Juengling Bean, the Boys’ Varsity team started their season off with a bang. Gioia placed 23rd with a time of 11:00.2, followed by Pickering’s time of 11:08.9 and Juengling Bean’s 11:36.3. The skill, speed, and agility of these team-members helped Albany place 10th out of 18 teams in the Boys’ Varsity Small School race.
Senior Eline Leemans, junior Brisa Bodell, and senior Patricia Mou proved exactly why they are on the Girls’ Varsity team. Their incredible times of 15:33.6, 15:44.7, and 17:28.3 would surely have placed Albany High in a high rank, if not for the shortage of Varsity runners present at the Ed Sias Invitational.
The Boys’ Junior Varsity team, like a good wine, gets better with time. Junior Tim Clopp ran a time of 12:39.7, placing 46th and receiving a score of 43, with juniors Ryan Masterson and Alex Muschler following closely behind. The hard work of these runners placed Albany as 16th out of 27 in the race.
The freshman and sophomores proved their worth in the Boys’ Frosh/Soph Race, when sophomore Nolan Tonkyn placed 25th with a time of 11:42.8 and received a score of 25. It is because of this score that junior Corwin Shiu pinpoints Tonkyn as an “outstanding” member of the team. Tonkyn’s victory was not unaccompanied, however, as sophomore Connor Brown and freshman Matthew Blankenship were the next two Albany runners to finish in this event. The amazing speed of the Freshman and Sophomore boys placed Albany High as 17th out of 28 schools in this race.
To the joy of the Cross Country Girls, more runners than previous years participated in the invitational this year, and Albany High School now hosts a freshman team. The Girls’ Freshman and Sophomore team did not take for granted their new position. Sophomore Saskia Braucher, freshman Molly Greene, and sophomore Connie Ma showed their stuff with their scores of 61, 70, and 84, respectively. The dedication of the Freshman and Sophomore girls placed Albany High as 17th out of 24.
With worlds of success already behind the Albany High School Cross Country teams, the future looks promising, and runners face the upcoming meets against Piedmont, Salesian, St. Mary’s, and Kennedy with loads of confidence. In fact, Shiu expressed surprise at how tangible victory over these schools feels, “We were tracking […] Piedmont and Saint Mary’s […] I thought it would be harder to compete.” With such a bright future ahead, Albany High Cross Country cannot help but show their Cougar Pride.
go cougars!!