By Leilani Valero.

Three cross country runners competed at the state meet on Nov. 3 earning places in both the girls and boys races.

Senior Andruw Villa placed second, senior Marin Murray placed 24 and junior Zoe Vann placed 34th.

“I learned how to run smarter, train smarter instead of over working.” Villa said. “Persistence was important, always running even if it was cold outside or raining, just making sure I got my run in.”

Workouts started in June, then early morning practices began when school started at 7:15 a.m. daily and after school practices ran until 5 p.m.. Athletes learned to take care of their body and have recovery times with the intense training schedule.

“Training everyday helps you be successful but also taking the time to recover after those training sessions,” Vann said. “Icing, stretching, and rolling out, those things help your body to prepare for the next workout.”

The cross country team practiced persistently, with boys placing first and girls placing second at the district meet.

“Our practices consisted of long runs, speed work, tempo runs and also some hill work.” coach Rosemary Martin said. “We did those at different locations, we’d go to ACU, neighborhoods and then of course at our track.”