In their first showing as a full team, the Southeast High School Girls Cross Country team came away from Oswego with five medals. Another small race, as Oswego hosted a cross country race for the first time, but that didn’t derail the Lancers from their goal. 

       “I was really excited to see what the team could do and what our freshmen were capable of this far into the season,” Coach Julie Jones said. “Our upperclassmen lead the way, as I expected them to. All three of them are great leaders, each in their own way.” And lead they did. Senior, Kendyl Renn, continued her strong season with a runner-up finish and a time of 23:22.

       “Kendyl is her own toughest critic. She ran 20 seconds slower than at Girard and was the first to point that out. What she doesn’t take into consideration is that she started her first mile under seven minutes, something she had yet to do this season,” Jones said.

       Jackie Robinson, junior, came in 25:07 and in 4th place. Her pace was also slower than last week, but with more hills in the switchbacks at Oswego Golf Course, Coach Jones isn’t surprised. Finishing in 5th place with a time of 26:15, Journee Rimmer, junior, also opened up in a faster first mile than she has all season. 

       “I was most happy that I passed Addy and Brooklyn. For a while, it felt like I couldn’t do it, but I slowly built up to both of them and was able to stay ahead of them. I need to work on my middle mile. It seems to be my slowest mile, so if I speed up in that part of the race, it’ll improve my overall time,” Rimmer said.

       The two freshmen competed in their first cross country race ever, and the small size of the race allowed for them to compete and gain confidence. Brooklyn Brazda finished seventh in a time of 27:38, while Addy Ulepich ran 27:50 for eighth place.

       “I think I did really well knowing that this was my first race, and I can’t wait to improve over time,” Ulepich said. 

       Because of the freshmen dual sport with volleyball, they won’t be back in action until Oct. 9, when they travel to Jayhawk Linn. The upperclassmen will race in their home meet held at Weir Baptist Camp on Sept. 25 at 5pm.