Eagerness to begin Southwestern Academy’s first cross-country race was high on Wednesday, September 20^th, 2023. The day was in perfect conditions for the debut race between Sequoyah School and Armenian Mesrobian School. The Southwestern Academy’s cross country runners prepared for weeks with intense training with a single goal in mind: to run better than yesterday. The team is led by two junior students, Thomas Scarioli and Keegan Valdez. Both, Thomas and Keegan, are joined by seven brave students across all high school grades.

The cross country team gave everything they could as they crossed the finish line. The fastest of the group was Keegan Valdez with a 23:51.75 running time. The students cheered on for each of their teammates as they came in one after the other. The team’s spirits were at an all-time high as they conquered not only the course but also their own limitations. The race concluded with high placements and have continued training hard for the next race. The cross country team will race again on Tuesday, October 3^rd, 2023.