BXC Reclaims the Fame
It is Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016. Pale blue skies and light winds circulate the start line of Exeter’s cross country course. The air is crisp, and seven boys from 13 D1 New England prep schools line up side-by-side on a mission to bring home the interscholastic champion plaque. To many Exonians, this is just another E/a, another weekend leading to the end of the term, but today is the day the Exeter boys’ cross country team has been dreaming about during every practice of the season. Adrenaline pumps through the veins of each boy on the team, blood boiling Red with the drive to win. As soon as the gun goes off, the team fights for gold in a sub-18-minute race filled with determination and the hunger for redemption.
This weekend, seniors and co-captains Jiro Mizuno, Issay Matsumoto and Garrett Pitt led Big Red to victory. The boys’ cross country team had been undefeated for four years, until last year, when they lost their top eight runners in the graduating class. They had to work hard and persevere to compensate for their loss, making the best of what they were left with, which was essentially their JV team. Each member of the team filled the shoes of those who left, bringing them to a third place result in the 2015 Interschols. Since then, the boys have run day and night, rain and shine to set the record straight.
“Each of us gave everything we had to the race, not because we wanted to run a fast time or place well individually, but because we each knew that every other member of the team was going to sacrifice all they had in the race and were counting on us to do the same.”
As the team was called down to the floor at the awards ceremony to be titled “New England Champions,” tears streamed down each and every one of their faces as they waved their plaque in the air. The team was back in their place as the best team in New England. Order had been restored.
The team secured the gold with a total score of 68 points, edging out the second place team, Andover, by 14 points. Atticus Stonestrom grasped the first spot by a whooping 11 seconds, continuing his undefeated streak this season. Co-captains Garrett Pitt, Issay Matsumoto and Jiro Mizuno followed closely after, placing sixth, ninth and 11th. Isaac Fingerson pulled through with a 41st place in the race, nailing the fifth spot.
“We ran for each other and won for each other,” Pitt says. “Each of us gave everything we had to the race, not because we wanted to run a fast time or place well individually, but because we each knew that every other member of the team was going to sacrifice all they had in the race and were counting on us to do the same.”
The JV team also managed to place in first, with an even more amazing score of 28 compared to the second place score of 54 points.
“Nolan was instrumental in leading the team to victory, continuing the tradition of an Exeter runner taking first in the JV race,” Pitt said.
Most of the time, people run on anger, using competition to fuel their race. This time, there was something different. The boys ran on pure love.
“As I came out onto the final field stretch into the stadium,” Matsumoto said. “I remember seeing Jiro right by my side, and feeling a weird sensation. It was love.”
The team credited their success to their coaches Brandon Newbould, Nick Unger and Bill Jordan. “Without Coach Newbould’s guidance and support, we wouldn’t have achieved any of this,” lower Jed Breen said.