The Cross Country team at Quartz Hill High School is not recognized enough for its excellent efforts. The runners in this group spend many of their hours preparing for races, meets, and other events that they compete at. They train vigorously for six of the seven days in the week to maintain the proper health that this sport requires. Elizabeth Dorantes, a junior varsity runner, stated that even though most of the practices are “physically challenging”, they are still held everyday after school and in the mornings on Saturdays.  

Practices can vary from intense track workouts on Mondays to longer runs on Thursdays. These runs range from six to seven miles for junior varsity and seven to ten miles for varsity. Romwel Uvas, another junior varsity runner, said,  “Going to practice for meets is the most important thing you can do to prepare, but you need to be hardworking and dedicated, and that’s what will make you successful on race day.” To prepare for meets and races, the runners typically have a lighter practice the day before, hydrate well throughout the day, eat a dinner with plenty of carbs, and rest properly.

Although the practices can be intimidating at times, the students enjoy being members of the Cross Country team. Dorantes said, “Cross country has helped me learn better time management skills as well as form a close bond with my teammates. It has also improved my health and fitness and acts as a stress reliever in my busy schedule.”  Another member of the Cross Country team, who preferred to stay anonymous, said, “After running Cross Country for four years, I have been able to live a much healthier and happier lifestyle. My stress levels have gone down and I continue to grow and become a stronger person inside.”

On Friday, September 8, 2017, the QHHS Cross Country team went to the Cool Breeze invite in Pasadena. Keith Karunaratne stated, “Our team did great at the meet! The JV boys team placed 2nd overall. The JV girls team did fantastic and the varsity teams ran some pretty amazing races.” The Quartz Hill Cross Country team is well known for being victorious; the boys are aiming for their 10th win in a row while the girls are trying to achieve their 4th consecutive win.

Last Wednesday, September 13, the team attended the first league meet at Barrel Springs invitational. The JV boys and girls, as well as the varsity girls, performed fantastically against their competition, winning in their divisions. Unfortunately, the varsity boys lost. Nevertheless, the team as a whole performed well, and they are looking forward to the rest of the season.