Week #11 - Historic Effort for Tandem XC: Boys 1st With a Sweep, Girls Take 2nd at GPAC Championships

 

 

A few weeks back, at Randolph Macon Academy, Eve had an incredible, season-altering race! At the mile mark, she realized that she had a lot of energy left, and she used it to move up throughout the second half of the race. Picking up where she left off two weeks ago, Eve delivered a masterful performance this afternoon.  She hit the mile mark in 8:05 - considerably faster than she has run at any other point this season - and was positioned in 22nd place. Competitive, hard-working and just plain tough, Eve began to make her move. She used the hill as an opportunity - while other runners faded, Eve was just getting started. She passed two runners, and as she finished the first lap, she hit another gear altogether. Eve's journey this season has been remarkable. A month ago, she made her GPAC debut here at Darden Towe, running 28:18. She earned a new PR two weeks ago at RMA: 27:41. Today, giving her absolute all, Eve ran 26:36 - a PR of OVER A MINUTE and a ONE MINUTE THIRTY EIGHT SECOND improvement from her September race on the same course. Eve finished 14th overall, five places ahead of where she finished her GPAC meet at FA! 

 

Lucy has been locked in since moment one. As we warmed up for our track workout the other day, she explained to me her strategy for team success today. "I'm going to go after the pack from Fredericksburg Academy," she began, "and Claire and Maeve are going to run with me. We're going to have four in the top ten!" I often tell Lucy that I have a crystal ball (which I do) that can predict her successful future. Nobody could've predicted the way the girls ran today. Before today, Lucy's PR was from the 2024 season. Mentally, it is truly quite challenging to know that an old version of yourself was running a certain time while the current you are struggling to match it. I'm sure Lucy would agree that's been difficult, but she did not waiver. She gave it her all at Darden Towe in September, running 24:04. She has pushed herself in each and every workout, consistently focusing on beating her old PR of 22:33. Today, with everything on the line, Lucy's 22:25 (6:33 at the mile mark) is a brand new PR of eight seconds! Earning 4th place overall and an all-conference medal, Lucy paced her team just as she has done in every meet this season - leading by example.

 

Leaning into the aforementioned strategy, Claire and Maeve left nothing to chance. They hit the mile mark in well under 7:00 - Maeve at 6:35 (right behind Lucy) and Claire 6:50. Over the course of the second mile, both athletes began to move up, with their eyes on opposing runners, working together to increase their pace. Claire has logged countless miles throughout the summer, and despite some lingering pain, she has been determined to do whatever she can to get faster and help the team. Claire ran 24:33 at Darden Towe in September. Dating back to last season, her previous PR was 23:48. So excuse me while I SCREAM her new time of 22:49, a PR of a FULL MINUTE! Goodness gracious Claire, talk about saving the best for last - 5th place overall, an epic PR, and an all conference medal!

 

Maeve's improvement has been similarly incredible. She ran 24:13 in September, came in with a PR of 23:20 and today ran an incredible 22:52! What an amazing first cross country season for this talented senior, who, like Claire, earned an all conference medal for her 6th place overall finish. Avery, who did not compete in this race in 2024, also gave it her absolute best. In what has been a magical comeback season for an athlete who put in a ton of work over the summer to get to where she is, Avery improved upon her 24:54 in October, when she ran 24:46. Today, she established yet another PR of 24:12 - an improvement of 32 seconds. After not qualifying for this meet last season, Avery is an All-GPAC Cross Country runner. Let that sink in! What a journey, Avery! Wow!

 

Working together, the pack of Hattie (25:46), Dhruvi (25:51), Sadie (25:57) and Alice (26:47) pushed each other to new heights. Hattie's time is an improvement of OVER A MINUTE - it is hard to believe that this is her first season with the team! Using all of her nervous energy, Dhruvi broke the 26:00 barrier for the first time! Her time is a PR of 41 seconds! She's an awesome training partner, and she and I ran the Badger workout together on Saturday. Dhruvi was constantly telling me she couldn't do it... but she completed every single interval. Her tone was different after today's race: "I'm so happy - do you think I can PR again at states?" Yes, Dhruvi, you can do anything! Sadie dropped two minutes off her time from September and set a new PR today! It's been an amazing season for Sadie, who has been incredibly strong and consistent. Alice ran 28:24 in September - and her time of 26:47 is an improvement of nearly A MINUTE AND FORTY SECONDS on this course. What's more, Alice established a new PR by over twenty!  

 

I could not be more proud of the best Girls Cross Country team in Tandem history. Every single athlete pushed themselves to be at their absolute peak, and can truly say that the October version of them is so much stronger than the September version (and the August version - remember those hills at Monticello-Saunders?!) That is the product of a LOT of hard work. You earned these PR's today, Badgers, and you did it together! It is an absolute joy to work with this group of runners - each of you did something truly special today!

 

 

With a natural stride and his rock-star hair flowing in the air, Jude is always pushing his teammates to do their best. When we complete an interval, he negotiates with his coaches to do more than originally planned. "I feel great," he offers, out of breath, before rearing back and completing yet another 800 meter run. Jude trains with Zeke and Alexander, a trio of Badgers who have improved dramatically this season. Whether it's a hard workout or a slow long run, this group never misses an opportunity to improve.

 

In 2024, Jude completed the GPAC Championships in a time of 22:53. In September, he ran 21:54. Today, Jude completed the challenging Darden Towe course in a time of 21:00 - establishing an incredible new PR of nearly a FULL MINUTE. Alexander did the same: 23:25 last season, 21:55 a month ago, and breaking the 21:00 mark for the first time ever: 20:58! That's also a PR of nearly a FULL MINUTE. Not to be left out, Zeke (22:07 last season and 21:54 in September) earned himself a FULL MINUTE PR as well: 20:58, finishing lock-in-step with Alexander. Congratulations to this trio of Badgers on their exceptional performances today, that 21:00 mark is serious business!

 

Yesterday, Coach Ned and the Varsity Boys talked about the possibility of sweeping the meet today (finishing with the top four runners.) In order for this to be possible, Peter W would need to run a huge PR and beat a strong runner from RMA. As the Badgers arrived at the mile mark, Hayes was out strong. Running all alone in first place, Hayes ran his first mile in a blazing 4:55, with Jack at 5:00 and Miles at 5:03. What a trio! Peter had already put 200 meters on his opponent - his mile of 5:22 is his fastest in any race this season.

Fast forwarding to the homestretch, Hayes took victory in 15:48, OVER A FULL MINUTE FASTER than his time of 16:57. The GPAC Runner of the Year, Hayes ran that time all by his lonesome - in the cold - and impresses every single time the gun goes off. Just wow. Jack was hot on his tail, running 16:37 (17:12 last season) and earning second place! What a storied career for Jack, who continues to perform at an incredibly high level and left it all out there for his last race at Darden Towe. Miles (3rd in 16:50) ran 31 seconds faster than his 2021 time! As he rounded the final curve, Peter had put even more separation between himself and RMA - and the sweep was complete. For Peter, his time of 17:52 matched his best race ever - and was OVER A MINUTE FASTER than he ran in 2024!  Such heart in that performance, Peter. One love!

 

Hayes, Jack B, Miles and Peter W swept the scoring for the Tandem Boys Varsity Cross Country team today. 10 points: the best possible score. What a dominant performance from a truly elite group of runners.

 

Tandem did not stop there. The Badgers had three more podium finishes, as Gabriel (6th) showed incredible growth! Our 400 meter school record holder dropped over TWO MINUTES from his time back in September, and earned a THIRTY NINE second PR of 18:20! Brendan (7th) ran THREE MINUTES faster than he ran in September! Holy moly! Today was also Brendan's new PR: 18:28 - seven seconds faster than his previous best! Jack Johnson (8th) earned a new PR of 18:33! Jack has grown tremendously over the course of the season: he ran 20:09 in September on the same course and much better weather. The October version of Jack is as tough as we've ever seen: his PR of over ONE MINUTE AND THIRTY seconds is a tribute to all of the hard work he has put in this season!  

 

Tandem's depth was on display today, as Asher had his best performance of the season as well. Adjusting to heavy mileage and battling injuries, Asher was the strongest version of himself today. His new PR of 19:12 is a TWENTY FOUR second improvement on his previous best! Leading a tough pack of John (19:32), Ethan (19:38 - a TWENTY ONE SECOND PR and congrats on his first time running sub-20:00), Will (19:40) and Peter D (20:03) would've beaten most GPAC teams by themselves. John's time is a MINUTE AND A HALF FASTER than he ran last season, and Will dropped ONE MINUTE AND FORTY SECONDS off his 2024 time!

 

The PR king, Nico sped through the finish line in 21:23. Nico dropped a FULL MINUTE off his PR, THREE MINUTES off his time from September and EIGHT FREAKING MINUTES off his 2024 time. Sheesh, Nico, you should be so proud of the work you have put in to become a completely different runner altogether. Some might ask, who even is this kid? Eight minutes from October 2024 to October 2025 is unreal, no time traveler could even hope to achieve something so extraordinary. Hot on his heels, Daniel earned a PR as well, coming through the mile in 6:52 (woah!) and the finish line in 23:38 - a TWO MINUTE improvement from September and a PR by eight seconds. Ian, one of our Senior leaders, broke 30:00 in 29:53.

 

A true juggernaut, the Tandem Boys Varsity Cross Country team is as dominant as any team in the state of Virginia. This team dominated the GPAC Championships, posting the best possible score of ten points. The Badgers had the top four runners, seven of the top ten, massive PR's, and did it all on a cold, dreary late fall day. The Badgers looked at the race as a rung on a ladder: first GPAC title, then on to VISAA states next Thursday. It is an absolute joy to be a part of this incredibly special, talented, spirited team.

 

I know I speak for fellow coaches Jason, Ned and Melissa when I express how proud of all of you we are. What an amazing day - you all have set an incredibly high standard for our team - and you have met that standard over and over. Thank you to all of our parents who served as course marshalls, took care of struggling runners and cheered on our athletes this afternoon. Thank you to all of the Tandem community who provided an enormous lift to our runners - we are so grateful for you! Badger Up!