For the past eight weeks, the 28 members of the Cross Country team collectively have ran about 5,600 miles. How far is that, you ask? Ohau, Hawaii is 5,600 miles from Philadelphia. So is Istanbul, Turkey.
All of that training has paid off. Malvern swept the InterAc Cross Country Championship at Belmont Plateau on Monday, October 21st,with both the JV and the Varsity taking their titles.
The JV set the tone, running first and placing 11 runners in the top 25 spots. Danny Ferraiolo won the meet with a time of 18:29, while Mike McHugh crossed the line in second place. In the varsity race, Jaxson Hoey was just 1.7 seconds off the pace of the race winner,completing the course in 16:04.6. His brother, Josh Hoey, led a group of four Malvern runners across the tape in 4th,5th, 6th, and 7thplace.
“This is what we have been working for all season,” said sophomore Colin Wills.
That season started off with a win at the McAlpin Invitational at Episcopal Academy on August 30th, where the top four runners were Friars. Jaxson Hoey took first, completing the 5000 meter course in 17:11.
The team won again at Rose Tree Park on September 14th. Malvern took home the trophy at the 24th Bulldog Cross Country Invitational, placing all five scorers, Jaxson Hoey, Billy McDevitt, Brendan Stec, Colin Wills, and Ryan Doane in the top 17.
Cross country faced its toughest test on September 21st at Belmont Plateau at The Briarwood Invitational. This particular race attracts elite running teams from all around the East Coast. Malvern placed 3rd overall with Jaxson Hoey pacing the team, finishing in 9th place overall and Billy Mc Devitt not far behind in 11th place.
Hoey and McDevitt represented Malvern at another elite meet in Carlisle, PA on September 28th. Hoey ran a blistering 15:53, which set a record for Malvern Cross Country in a 5K meet. McDevitt also had an impressive race, crossing the line just 37 seconds later.
At the Fr. Beattie Salesianum Invitational at Brandywine Creek State Park on October 5th, Malvern had to overcome temperatures in the high 80’s, 95% humidity and a 100 yard hill near the finish to capture the title.
Cross Country is a unique sport with no time-outs, substitutions, or halftime; every team member participates in every race. In addition to vying for team titles, the athletes aim for personal records, runners train to cut seconds off their time in every race.
The next meet after the InterAc Championship is the Independent School State Championship on October 26. Both championships run at the Belmont Plateau and its famed Parachute Hill, which has a 45 degree gradient. All those training miles should have Malvern in great shape to bring home another title.
Update: The team took the title, twice. After winning InterAcs, XC won the Independent School State Championships on October 26th.
