Despite the negative impact quarantine had on people, Saint Joe Cross Country runners pushed through it and made them stronger for their upcoming season. The boys’ team remarkably finished fifth out of seventeen schools in the Northwood invite last Saturday.

It was their first actual race in 10 months. So how did these runners overcome quarantine and produce better results than expected?

The COVID situation closed buildings, institutions, and schools in the middle of March, including sports. Particularly hard hit by this were spring athletes, including the seniors who lost their last season in track and field. Despite this, the returning runners did not lose hope and stayed motivated.

In order to honor these seniors, they are going to run and honor them with every step they take. The varsity group maintained their dedication throughout the whole quarantine period and summer. They committed to the common goal of not giving up and getting better each day.

Zach Taylor, now the senior leader of the Cross Country team, explains, “It’s what you do in the offseason that defines how you do during the season.” Zach doesn’t want to disappoint his teammates and is not going to let COVID dampen his mentality. This attitude inspired other runners to follow Zach and the other team leaders during summer conditioning.

Logging hundreds of miles during the summer, the team was eager to see the impact on their times this fall.  After two early meets were cancelled, the team competed in the Northwood invite on August 29.  The result was a fifth place finish in a deep field – demonstrating significant growth in the offseason.

COVID didn’t set back our Saint Joe runners but, instead, provided an opportunity for the squad to get stronger through dedication to honor the 2020 seniors. Follow these runners through their incredible effort in workouts, team synergy, and upcoming schedule by following them on twitter @SJTrackXC