The Centennial Eagles Cross Country teams faced off for the 2024 2A State championships, with both the girls and boys squads looking to build off of their successes throughout the year. Every Eagle competing had a level of determination that put them in a position to win.
It was “a perfect day to run, clear, not too hot, not too cold,” junior Jack Arrington said in regards to the Cross Country 2A State Championship. Seven boys and seven girls represented Centennial, competing at Hereford High School, where the course is well known to be the hardest in the state. It was no easy task for the Centennial Eagles to win the three-mile race and leave that day with the title of “State Champions,” but they were up for the challenge.
The Eagles were welcomed into the event after their decisive County and Regional Championship wins, for both the girls’ and boys’ teams. On the boys’ side of the race, their biggest competition was Wilde Lake and Poolesville. If the Eagles could beat out those two teams, the state championship was almost certain. For the girls, Hereford was always going to give them trouble, as they had the first-place finisher in last year’s race and beat out Centennial for the state championship by a mere two points. However, even with the loss last year, the girls had no doubt in their ability.
While the athletes strive for individual victories, the race was about something greater, their current team and the generations of runners before them. Before the race began, the Centennial runners dedicated the meet to Fernando Duraes, a former dominant Centennial cross country athlete. They did this to send the message and emphasize that this meet isn’t for one individual person, it was for every runner, a culmination of all the Eagles to go through this program.
“As I was going up the last hill everyone was yelling ‘Think about Fernando’ and it made me keep pushing and realize this race is bigger than myself,” said junior Harper Koening about how thinking of the team’s message pushed him near the end of the race.
At the first-mile mark of the race, the girls had a team lead and were in first place overall, while the boys were in fourth place. However, at the second-mile mark the boys moved up to third, with only Poolesville and Wilde Lake ahead of them. The girls held their lead through the second mile. As the end of the race neared, individually, senior Riley Herdson was neck and neck with a Hereford runner.
As the finish line approached, the same runner who defeated Herdson last year had lost her lead. Herdson passed her in the final 200 meters and was crowned the winner of the race with a time of 19:12, making her the overall girls 2A state champion.
“Hereford has always been such a notorious opponent, and I knew coming up the hill at the end would be so important to my race. I had run [the course] in practice earlier this year, and I knew it would be hard, but it’s hard for everyone. As I was racing, I kept telling myself to believe and smile and push myself.” said Herdson.
As the other six female Eagles finished the race soon after, it became clear the Eagles would win the 2A Girls’ Team State Championship with a total of 39 points. Hereford finished second with 67 points and Centennial got their victory.
Riley Herdson – 1st place – 19:12
Kaylee Beal – 3rd place – 19:36
Catie Fritz – 10th place – 20:29
Allison Crumley – 13th place – 20:48
Sarah Mahaney – 17th place – 21:05
Carolyn Shadrick – 24th place – 21:24
Emily Graff – 32nd place – 21:44
The girls team was not the only state champion that day, as the boys wrote a similar story. While Wilde Lake and Poolseville were great teams, they were no match for the mighty Eagles. Seven amazing performances from the runners on the boys side were able to push the Eagles into first place at the three-mile mark, and they were awarded the title of back-to-back 2A Boys’ Team State Champions with 70 total points.
Fifth-place finisher David Herzberger claimed that the race “was more about winning as a team for [the] second consecutive year than anything else.” Altogether it was a very successful win for both the boys and girls Centennial cross country teams.
David Herzberger – 5th place- 16:37
Jason Oberly – 13th place – 17:05
Harper Koening – 17th place – 17:11
Jack Arrington – 22nd place – 17:14
Ian Doll – 26th place – 17:23
Tate Hancock – 30th place – 17:40
Medhi Ibrahim – 32nd place – 17:48
