On October 17, a chilly Saturday afternoon, seven Harriton varsity runners lined up to race in the Cross Country Central League Championships. Directly next to them stood seven Lower Merion runners followed by runners from 10 other schools, intensity covering their faces like war paint. The stakes were the highest they had ever been. At 11-0, the undefeated Harriton team stood poised to claim the title of Central League champions. The only team that could stop them was their 10-1 rival LM. With a loss to Harriton early on in the season, LM was unable to claim the championship, but there was a possibility the two schools would tie. At promptly 2:30 pm, the gun sounded and the race began.

Although this season marked a definite peak in the Harriton cross country team’s racing ability, the Running Rams’ success was not the result of just one year of hard work. The season starts the first week of June and ends in early November, making it a five-month stretch of intense daily training. In order for a runner to reach their peak, they must build on several years of running experience. In one year, a runner is typically able to shave between 30 and 60 seconds from their 5K time (3.1 miles). Most Harriton varsity runners ran their freshman year 5Ks around 19:00, so getting down to the 17:04 average time for Harriton at the Central League championships required years of training to increase endurance and speed. The Harriton boys’ 11-0 record must be credited not only to this year but also to the past four years of work.

Cross country offers very little room for mistakes.  Although only the top seven runners are counted in the varsity performance, the eighth or ninth man may be the deciding factor if one of the predicted top seven performs poorly or drops out. At Harriton’s two biggest regular season races, LM and Conestoga, runners who would typically be in the varsity seven did not run good races and the final result came down to Harriton’s eighth man. Fortunately, in both instances, Harriton was still able to win the race, demonstrating the depth of the team.

After the gun sounded at the Central League Championships, all 12 Central League teams took off running. Harriton settled in neck and neck with Lower Merion, both teams cautious about going out too fast. Throughout the race, members of the Harriton girls’ cross country team shouted words of encouragement to the boys.

By the time everyone had finished the race, it was clear that LM had fought hard. Despite Harriton’s Jonah Gillespie-Sickmen winning the race outright, LM had stuck together as a pack and had a high placement to show for it. As it turned out, LM beat Harriton by a small margin, earning them the title of co-champions for the Central League.

Although Harriton was unable to come out on top, the team still ran a very strong race and they were proud of their co-win. Harriton made sure to congratulate the Lower Merion boys at the race, and shortly after, both teams held a joint running workout at Penn Wynne Park to train for what would be the final race of the season.

That race was the District I championships, the culminating event for most high school cross country teams. Only the top five teams in each district advance to the race for the state championships in Hershey. For the first time, Harriton had a clear shot at advancing as a team. The boys’ and girls’ teams gave it their best shot at Lehigh University, where they raced against several dozen teams from across southeastern Pennsylvania, including Lower Merion High School.

Districts on the boys’ side ended up being a major disappointment. The goal was to make states, requiring a finish in the top 5 teams. Harriton ended up finishing 20th, seven places behind Lower Merion, and one place behind Conestoga (a team they previously beat handily in the Central League Championships). Considering the team’s potential and previous successes, this result was devastating. However, Jonah Gillespie-Sickmen, Harriton’s #1 runner, managed to run a 16:07. This 24-second improvement from last year’s district race qualified him for the state championships for the second year in a row.

On the girls’ side, Harriton experienced far more encouraging results. Tasha Greene, Harriton’s #1 girls runner, qualified for states also for the second year in a row. Both Greene and Gillespie-Sickmen will be racing in Hershey this Saturday.

The other six girls’ varsity runners all shaved off substantial amounts of time in their races. The race of the day belonged to freshman Michelle Qin, who set the Harriton all-time record for the fastest 5K time as a freshman of 19:45.

Cross country has had a season to remember. This team is the first team to go undefeated in the Central League in Harriton history, composed of a strong, humble community of athletes who have shown unwavering dedication through five months of brutal training. They shall return for vengeance next year.