On November 5, 2015, Eleanor Roosevelt High School’s cross country team participated in the MPSSAA 4A South Regional Cross Country Championship. The boys came in an astounding first place with 39 points in their division, while the girls came in close behind, placing second in their division with 44 points. Going against all the schools in the 4A South region, the pressure to win was weighing heavily on the teams. Luckily, they didn’t let it affect their performance.

The first 5 runners for the boys were Edward Belsoi (junior), Tim Crane (senior), Opeyemi Olayiwola (sophomore), Bryce Dubayah (junior), and Hylton Irons (senior), placing 2nd, 4th, 9th, 11th, and 13th respectively. Their average running time was 17:46 for a distance of 5,000 meters, the highest of all the schools. For the girls, the first 5 runners were Abigail Miller (sophomore), Nina Mcgranahan (freshman), Aura Celeste (senior), Caroline Ahalt (senior), and Mary Anna Brogi (senior), all placing 3rd, 5th, 11th, 12th, and 13th respectively. Their average running time was 23:59 for the same distance, placing second, just behind Bowie High School. With these exemplary scores and times, the cross country team will be qualifying for the state competition on Saturday, November 15, 2015.

Coach Rob Stephens expressed that he is proud of how far his team has come. “We went there to win,” said Stephens. “What I love about cross country is that it’s an individual sport, but also a team sport too. It was exciting to see the team running as a pack, and to see the alternates running around, encouraging and cheering their teammates on. That’s what makes a good team.”

Edward Belsoi, the star runner of the boys’ team, stated that the main goal for the team was to qualify for states and dominate their competition. “[During the meet], I threw away the aspect of time, of running a fast time, and focused on sticking to the person in front of me.” Abigail Miller, one of the main runners for the girls team, states that another main goal is to “get respect again.” “Our main goal is to go in and get respect again because we haven’t been respected as a team that’s going to go and dominate states.”

Both girls’ and boys’ teams have been doing all they can to prepare for states all season. Tim Crane, a captain, states that they’ve “done all they can workout wise.” “Ever since June, we’ve done long-hourly workouts, workouts oriented toward speed, workouts oriented toward distance, such as 400 meter workouts, 1000 meter workouts, mile repeat workouts, etc. Physically, this is the best we’re going to be, so for right now we’re trying to rest and get our legs fresh for the state meet.”

With all their hard-work and determination to be the best, the team is definitely ready to compete at the state meet.