Pulling ahead in the last 50 meters, Kinsee Brands ‘18 won the girls varsity race in her first cross country meet. The girls cross country team had chosen to hold its varsity out and ran the next seven girls in line. The IMS Early Bird Meet was a great place to let the City High girls show what they could do. It paid off, as the girls won both the JV and varsity races.

“It gave girls a chance to run at a varsity level in a low key meet,” Tom Mittman, girls head coach, said. “I think they’ll gain nothing but confidence from [running] and doing extremely well.”

The girls team welcomed a large class of freshmen this season. Julia Veit ‘20, after running her first high school race, reflected on what it has been like to be a part of the team.

“There is very good team atmosphere,” Veit said. “Everyone is just pushing each other.”

The boys cross country team also looked to start the season well, winning both the varsity and junior varsity races.

“I love coming to IMS because it’s a great warm up, there’s no pressure, no serious competition,” Jayme Skay, boys head coach, said. “We can just focus on how to run a race. [The] boys ran well under the conditions and times were decent.”

Many of the runners were eager to kick off their season with a meet, as they had been practicing regularly over the summer. Olivier Shabani ’19 described his attitude going into the race.

“This summer I ran with [Matthew] Dodge, [Michael] Taylor – the fast guys. Running with them really helped me push through the race. Knowing that I train with good people and that I’m racing them makes trying to catch them the top priority for me,” Shabani explained.

After a satisfying kickoff to the season, both teams are looking towards their future challenges. Their next meet at Pleasant Valley will be tough, with some of the best teams of the Midwest in attendance. It is a challenge that the teams now feel prepared to tackle.

“[Today] has built confidence to the kids just starting their cross country careers,” Mittman said.