(Photos courtesy of Lexi Howard)

The McPherson High School’s cross country team powered up with several new freshman to add to the team. The boys and girls traveled to Hesston for the Invitational on Thursday, September 10th. This particular meet is split down by grade levels.

The team has been working hard all week and was fatigued from the extreme workouts. Although the team may have been tired, McPherson cross country pushed through it as well as they could.

With three finishers in the top 20 for the freshman girls they did particularly well. MaryAnn Wurm place second with a time of 22:50.6, Katie Bahr with a 22:56.3 for fifth place and Hannah Hageman placed 18th with a time of 25:16.7. No other grade for Mac had as many top 20 finishers in the Hesston Invitational.

“Coming in as a freshman I knew that I was going to have to work really hard if I wanted a spot on varsity,” said Katie Bahr. “To be honest I really didn’t know what to expect other than it was going to be hard. I can say though I never expected to be where I am at right now. It is the best feeling in the world to run your hardest and get rewarded with a varsity spot.”

On September 17, the team traveled to the McPherson’s school rival, Buhler. Not like Hesston, Buhler competed varsity teams against other varsity teams not just by grade level. Going into this meet, McPherson hoped to make a better outcome running a 4K for girls and a 5K for the boys.

“Training all summer definitely makes all the hard work feel good at the end knowing it is paying off,” Bahr said.  “Going into a race I try to stay calm otherwise the nerves get to me. I also need everything to be perfect and am kind of superstitious about the way my hair is, how tight my shoes are, and other silly little details. I mostly just try to stay calm and envision my teammates and myself running a perfect race.”

The Varsity girls were again dominate with three finishers breaking 20:00.0 and finishing in the top 50. Katie Bahr, MaryAnn Wurm, and Michelle Carrillo all proved they are only improving along with the rest of the team.

The boys also had three finishers in the top 50 of the 5K race they participated in. Paxton Leaf, Chris Kirchner, and Isaiah Moyer were the boys that inched their way into the top.

“As a role model I always stress that the race is going to be the hardest thing ever but you must push past that mental barrier holding you back from running faster. The first thought before racing is to keep a positive mindset. I don’t race happy I race really bad,” Chris Kirchner said. “You have to be mentally prepared to break barriers like that before the race. My goal for the season is to get a personal best time and qualify for the state meet, as a team I hope to win regionals.”