Cross Country
October 20, 2021
The Baldwin girls and boys cross country teams are experiencing a little more frustration this year than they have in previous seasons.
With the boys team starting with a record of 3-5, and the girls team starting with a record of 4-4, — compared to previous records of 5-2 and 6-1 respectively — junior Emily Fowler said the losses could stem from the graduation of last year’s seniors.
“We lost some good runners last school year, so it was hard to get back the motivation we had from last year,” Fowler said. We lost some good runners last school year, so it was hard to get back the motivation we had from last year. — Emily Fowler
Senior runner Bobby Konesky agreed, referring particularly to the loss of graduate Zach Wyse as a possible reason for the slow start.
Tough losses are another reason for the struggle this season.
“Chartiers Valley was a close meet, and we only lost to Peters by one point,” Konesky said.
Fowler cited some losses that she felt should have been victories.
“We lost to some teams we’ve beaten in the past and that has led to a loss of motivation. It’s been harder for some people to get back to what they have to do to win,” she said.
Konesky said one motivating factor for him this year is the friendly rivalry he has with senior Dom Ditoro
“I compete a lot with Dom Ditoro. My rivalry with him motivates me to run faster and better,” he said.
Both Konesky and Fowler said that pressure in the form of academics was affecting them.
Konesky, looking to run in college, said he feels a great deal of pressure with universities looking at him. Fowler said that a lot of her pressure has come in the form of balancing school and cross country.
She said she hopes that next season the teams can gain more runners.
“I hope that we gain a lot more people next year, so that we can get back to our better records,” she said.