By maintaining an 89-0 record over the past four years, the Southern Lehigh girls’ cross country team consistently topped the league in their sport. But this season, they proved to be different from years past. Between the 2022 to the 2023 season, the team lost many valuable graduates, including the program’s top two runners: Maura Lenhart and Alaina Patel.
“It was a little nerve-racking coming into this season because it put more pressure on our team to make up for what we had lost,” senior captain Celia Knoedler said.
To maintain this team’s success after the loss of three out of seven of last year’s varsity runners, it came down to the returning team members and the new faces to step up.
“Going into the season, I knew it was going to be very challenging, but with our incoming freshmen, we had a very good shot at succeeding,” Coach Justin Kocis said.
The incoming freshmen class quickly filled in for the missing spots, rebuilding the cross country team. The team’s dynamic turned upside down, becoming underclassman dominated, with five out of seven varsity runners as freshmen and sophomores.
With the team’s youth, many questioned extra challenges the girls may face in their season. However, Coach Kocis considered this new beginning to be a positive factor.
“This was the first time in years that we didn’t have an ‘X’ on our back. We didn’t feel as much pressure as years past, and we were even able to exceed expectations,” Coach Kocis said.
“I feel we all created a special type of bond by running with one another daily, listening to Christmas music, and supporting each other through thick and thin,” sophomore captain Lauren Miller said. “Outside of practice, we also hosted pasta parties for even more team bonding opportunities.”
Although cross country is widely considered an individual sport, the Southern Lehigh girls believe it takes the entire team to accomplish greatness.
“The support system of our team was our ultimate motivator,” Miller said. “Without everyone, we wouldn’t have gotten to where we are today.”
Looking to the future, the girls’ cross country team hopes to regain their title as the first place in the Colonial League and make a return to states as a team.
The team will resume training in June to prepare for another rewarding season.
“The commitment from all 19 [of the girls] ultimately leads us to our success.” Coach Kocis said. “I feel with the right training and team dynamic, next year is the year we will regain our title.”
