After running an exceptional race at Willow Hill Reservoir this Saturday, the Jesuit High School Varsity Cross Country team will be heading to the state meet on November 29th at Woodward Park, Fresno.

Along with the Varsity team, the Freshmen team triumphed over their toughest competitor, the Davis High School Blue Devils. They came in first place, while the Sophomore team came in a close second place.

“Winning a section championship and placing five runners in the top 13 is a great result,” said Coach Tom Witzgall ‘98. “Going into the section championship, we knew our team was extremely talented and had been running some impressive workouts.”

Representing Jesuit at the top of the results, Benjamin Holland ‘17 placed second, followed by Patrick Cummings ‘16 in sixth place, and Michael Lackner ‘16 in eighth place.  

Seen running along the American River each week, the whole team owes much of their success to the vigorous training they do. Their hard work translates to success on the course of each meet.

“It was fun training with people I had raced against last year. The training was a lot more intense but it payed off in the races, which helped us win sections,” said Todd Russell ‘19, who had a successful first year running with the Freshmen team.

The Varsity team is expected to do well at this year’s state meet after running phenomenal races this entire season.

“The guys ran awesome times on the state meet course earlier this year and I think they can finish in the top three if they have another good race,”  Coach Witzgall said.

Placing top in each race consistently and advancing past sections, each grade level shows greatness in the future of Jesuit’s Cross Country Program.