Centennial cross country had their final meet Oct. 13, the regional qualifier.

The team did well, but it wasn’t an easy road to get there.

The season started this summer, with weekday morning practices. The first meet of the season occurred before school began, on Aug. 20. This allowed the runners to get the first taste of what was to come: the adrenaline, the nerves, the full 5k distance, and the wind down period.

“It’s a mental battle,” senior Julia Smock said.

Each morning, the runners meet at 6:15 at the school, where they are put through a different run each day. Monday is the long run, about 45 to 50 minutes; Tuesday, timed mile repeats; Wednesday, recovery run, and Thursday, 400m sprints or hill runs. Friday was a rest day before each meet.

“The practices pushed harder than we could have ever imagined at times,” Smock said. “But we knew we were going to hurt together and that’s what makes us such a close knit team!”

Most Thursdays, the team meets at a different member’s house for a pasta party. They hang out, load up on spaghetti, and go to Orange Leaf for frozen yogurt.

Each meet was a new course, in a new place, but the last meet at Warren was different than the others. Each team was allowed only seven people on varsity, making the group quite a bit smaller.

“The last meet was very challenging because there was very little competition,” junior Jovana Alanis said. “It made it hard to get focused and get in a good running pace during the race.”

Still, each runner ran hard, braving what most of them feel was the hardest course, a 5k loop around Warren Park.

One varsity runner, Harrison Phillips, qualified to represent Centennial for the regional meet on Oct. 29.