Girls' Cross Country Comes in Second, Places Ahead of Loomis Chaffee by 6 Points

The girls’ cross country team took second place this past Saturday during an invitational meet at NMH. After a two hour and fifteen minute bus ride, the girls’ team arrived to find a rather unsettling course.“The course is straight death. It’s one hill, then another hill, and yet another,” senior Courtney Henrich said.Even with the incredibly difficult terrain in an unfamiliar setting, Big Red set their sights on doing their best. Giving it their all, the girls finished in an extremely close second place. In regards to the tough terrain, senior and co-captain Elsa Chinburg said, “The course was absolutely brutal so nobody’s times looked that great, but everyone finished strong. Varsity and JV races did really well.”While running one of the hardest courses of her career, upper Anna Barnes stood out. “Anna had been out for a while and ended up winning the JV race with a top varsity time so that’s pretty awesome,” Henrich said.The 5 kilometer race started out with a bang, with Kimball Union, Loomis Chaffee, NMH, Andover, Cushing and Exeter shooting out of the gate. In the opening minutes, a distinguished order was established. KUA, Andover and Cushing fell behind in the opening kilometer. Exeter, Loomis Chaffee and NMH all had their sights set on first place as the race edged on and on. One girl from NMH shot out in lead and continued to be the frontrunner for the remainder of the race. Exeter and Loomis Chaffee strove to catch up, and in a matter of minutes, Loomis Chaffee started to pull ahead. Exeter remained calm and steadily regained their place as a presence on the unforgiving trail. After some grueling final minutes, the girls finished in a close second place overall.After an exciting and emotional meet this past Saturday, Big Red girls’ cross country team found out that their next meet, the Exeter Invitational scheduled for this Saturday, has been cancelled. With their week off, the girls plan to not only relax, but also gear up for their next race against Northfield Mount Hermon School. NMH, who won the invitational meet this past Saturday, will be a tough competitor next Wednesday.What is in store for Big Red for the rest of the season? After their upcoming race against NMH, the girls are scheduled to race against Deerfield Academy, a major Exeter rival. To keep their heads on these upcoming meets, the girls plan on multiple lifting sessions followed by long hot tub and cold tub rotations accompanied by some smooth jazz. After their practices running through Exeter’s scenic trails, the girls will continue to set their sights on the future of this season.