BXC Battles Injuries in Scrimmage

This past Saturday, boys’ cross country was put to the test in its season opener at the Choate Invitational. As per tradition, no official team scores were calculated at this low-key meet, making it a good opportunity for schools to try out different racing strategies. The early race also gave teams a general idea of who their top seven varsity runners would be. 

“We came out strong, our packs were tight and every Exeter runner from top to bottom showed unrestrained savagery in their pursuit of pain, strife and victory,” upper Garrett Pitt said.

The race, which took place on Choate’s notoriously challenging course, gave the team a chance to become familiar with the discomfort that is typical in cross country.

“A wise old shufflehound once said, ‘I could just slow down and let this guy pass me. Or [nah]!’ We did just that on the hills of Choate,” Pitt said, explaining the tough mentality that the boys worked on during the race.

“We came out strong, our packs were tight and every Exeter runner from top to bottom showed unrestrained savagery in their pursuit of pain, strife and victory.”

Despite good racing from the boys, if the meet were officially scored, Big Red would have lost to Loomis Chaffee by one point, making it the boys’ first loss in four years. Although the race was not as strong a start as the team has become accustomed to, the team can find solace in knowing that its top runners did not race in the meet, indicating potential for improvement.

“We aren’t even in our final form. We were missing three of our top runners: [uppers] Cam Corso and Atticus Stonestrom due to injury, and [senior] Marichi Gupta, who we lost in the midst of the savagery. He was a good student of the sport, and I will miss his smile everyday in practice,” upper Issay Matsumoto said.

Upper Jiro Mizuno agreed with Matsumoto’s optimistic outlook on the season, noting the challenge of racing after losing a strong graduating class.

“This season is very promising, as this was our first race without our excellent present-freshmen in college, and we still ran hard. We didn't slow down this race, because slowing down is for losers. We aren’t losers. We’re winners,” he said.

The absence of last year’s seniors also meant that many of the boys were in an unfamiliar position: competing for spots on the varsity top seven. The junior varsity runners from last year suddenly found themselves under the pressure of being key contributors to the team’s varsity squad. Senior Cam Rider elaborated on the learning process that came with more responsibility on the team.

“Working out packs was really our first priority in this race. I think we learned a lot. We now have a better sense of how we should start, how to maintain a lead as a team and what each individual runner can do to score the points we need,” he said.

Moving forward, the boys will race in Boston at the Codfish Bowl, where they will continue to hone their racing strategies. They haven’t lost sight of their ultimate goal: to win a fifth consecutive New England Championship title.

“We’re going for that plaque in Taft. I hope we honor Marichi with our offerings of blood and pain,” Mizuno said.