By DAVID WOOD, for The Democrat
By most standards, 2018 was a great year for the Brown County cross-country program.
Not only did Head Coach Rob Abraham see nine runners advance to regionals, but three of them also reached semi-state.
However, as with all teams, departing seniors leave a void of experience, causing a once-seasoned squad to become green over a single summer.
That’s certainly the case for the BCXC boys.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]“I lost the house from last year,” Abraham said. “I lost five seniors and I only have two boys returning.”
Most notably, the program saw the departures of Jackson McPheeters and Marino Dolph, two of the three semi-state finishers. Now, only junior Cameron Fox and sophomore Rhett Silbaugh remain.
“You end up throwing in three freshmen and one more sophomore. It’s a situation where there’s going to be a learning curve,” Abraham said.
“But, it’s also nice to have a young team, because you’re also coaching. These guys know that they don’t know it all and they lean on you a little bit more.”
Younger members will also learn to lean on Fox as he takes over where the previous upperclassmen left off.
“Taking over is a pretty big role since they were seniors and I’m a junior. But, I think grade doesn’t matter,” Fox said.
He and hopeful newcomer Chase Austin finished a strong fourth out of 17 at the BCXC Challenge on Aug. 21. Together they ran a combined time of 17:57.48.
“It’s important for him to help the other guys know what they need to do so they don’t have to worry about situations like when we warm up, do this, or do that,” Abraham said.
“There’s already someone there who I can lean on.”
First-time members Waylon Patrick and Rafe Silbaugh also took a seventh-place finish for Brown County with a combined time of 18:54.95.
Thankfully for Abraham, the girls side of the program has only grown during the off-season.
Last year they couldn’t even meet the six-member minimum to produce a team score, but with three new additions and three returning members, they’re now ready to race.
Returning members include senior Maris Wyman, junior Emelia Koester and junior Anna Fleetwood. All three raced at last year’s regionals with Koester moving on to semi-state.
New members include junior high standout Abby Fleetwood as well as junior Emma Debord and sophomore Hadley Gradolf. Debord previously ran as a freshman.
“I think my partner Abby Fleetwood and I did really well. Noblesville and Columbus North were really good and they had some strong runners, so we were just trying to stick with them,” Koester said.
The duo clocked in a BCXC Challenge time of 19:20.37, good enough for a sixth-place finish among a stacked field of 41.
“We ran 2500 meters the first week of practice, so it’s going to be interesting to go back through and compare those times that we just put in today. It’s a little bit different when you’re racing in practice compared to actually racing in a meet,” Abraham said.
Unfortunately, with Anna Fleetwood out with an injury, Wyman was unable to clock in a paired score, but she still ran the first half of the race.
“We had a time trial at the beginning of the season and I ran faster today than I did then, so I’m happy about that,” Wyman said.
“But, I don’t know if it’s exactly where I want to be.”
As a senior, Wyman doesn’t have the option of slacking off and has a little bit of added pressure compared to her teammates. It’s her last shot as a high school athlete, but more importantly, it’s her last year to spend time with her team.
“It hasn’t hit me yet, but once it’s all over I’ll be upset,” she said
“… It’s bittersweet, but I think I’ll miss the people more than the actual sport.”
MEET THE EAGLES
Boys: Chase Austin, Cameron Fox, Waylon Patrick, Rafe Silbaugh, Rhett Silbaugh, Dylan Taylor, Ivan Thomas
Girls: Emma Debord, Abigail Fleetwood, Anna Fleetwood, Hadley Gradolf, Emelia Koester, Maris Wyman
