By Risa Askerooth

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MHS’ cross country athletes sprinted to the finish at the Hawaii High School Athletic Association (HHSAA) championships, held at Patsy T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park (CORP) on Nov. 1. With the team’s score of fifth overall and Juniors Vanessa Roybal and Lauren Gibbs and Senior Jakob Dewald placing in the top 10, the results were a reward for a long season of hard work.

“That’s really good because a lot of other schools have so (many) great and fast runners that (to place) fifth out of all the schools, that’s a really good accomplishment,” said boys co-captain Junior Evan Yonamine.

MHS placed sixth at the state championships last year in Kauai, held on Oct. 25. However, this year was an entirely different experience for athletes, as the CORP course posed a challenge for many due to the hills involved. “CORP, it’s a harder course for me because there’s a lot of hills and grass and I don’t do too good on grass,” said Yonamine. “The course was definitely a lot harder than last year’s state course but I liked it regardless,” said Roybal, co-captain of the girls team. “During the race, there’s some turns so you can see this huge line of people behind you and it’s great.”

The championships involved two races, one of 200 girls and another of 200 boys, making the crowded starting line intimidating. “This is the first actual big race that we had this season,” recalled Yonamine. “I was very definitely nervous because I didn’t want to get stuck in the back. So I did my best to get out as fast as I could in the beginning.”

Persistence and dedication are components that are essential to being successful in cross country races.  “I always try to tell myself just to keep on pushing, keep on pushing because before you know it the race is over. So just push through all the pain and know that all my hard work – this is what it’s for,” said Yonamine. Dewald, co-captain of the boys team, added, “I just try to keep stay focused as much as I can and try to distract myself from the pain.”

Even with difficulties and setbacks, this season allowed the team to set new goals for themselves and improve upon their past performances. “I kind of started off the season really rough, but it made winning westerns and my successes at states and (the Oahu Interscholastic Association championships) mean a lot more to me,” expressed Roybal.

With months of practice, this season also allowed athletes to bond as a team and grow closer together. “This season was kind of unique. We didn’t really have a lot of loud people on the team like how we usually do. The team was really conservative so a lot of our bonding had to be planned out,” stated Dewald. “But we actually had a pretty good bond after a while, after everybody started to get comfortable with each other.”

Roybal will advance to the regional championships in California on Dec. 6, while the rest of the team already looks forward to another cross country season next year.