Normally, one sees basketball, football, baseball and soccer making headlines in the newspapers. There is rarely a big headline on the front page for sports like cross country. Unfortunately, this is because there is very little coverage for teams like this. In Abington, our cross country team has hardworking, talented student-athletes that dedicate their time to making Abington successful in athletics. We have a young and dedicated team that is hungry for victory. “With new additions to the team and some returning players, the team has done very well. I see my team going a lot further than people would expect us to,” said junior Molly Ferguson. This cross country team is confident in their potential, and knows they can go far if they keep working hard.

Many of the players said they decided to do cross country because they wanted to stay in shape for other sports. Others, like Nick Sideropoulos said, “I’ve always loved running, but after having such a successful track season, I decided to do cross country this year to get in better shape and hopefully have an even more successful season this coming spring.”

Cross country is a sport that some decided to pick up just to have something to do, but has turned into something they truly enjoy. We asked Ferguson what her favorite part about being on a team was. “Knowing I will always have someone to cheer me up when I’m down; knowing someone will help me out when I make a mistake, or don’t understand something; as corny as it may sound, the teamwork makes the dream work. Without my team, whether it is cross country, basketball, or track, I wouldn’t be where I am today.” Anyone who has experienced a close-knit team knows exactly how Molly feels.

Cross country is a 5k race where the winners and losers are determined by points. The points are given in descending order, the first runner gets the most, and the last gets the least. The first five runners from each team are the ones that matter in the end. Add up the first five runner’s number of points for each team and whoever has the most points, wins.

In order to get ready for a race junior Ali Phair listens to music and has a “pep talk with the team.” It helps her get mentally prepared.

Hopefully in the future the Cross Country team will get more recognition. It’s a team stacked with humble, committed, hardworking student athletes who put in effort every day for their team, and ultimately, their school. It’s a shame that newspapers don’t cover the cross country team as much as others. Abington High School is lucky to have a team like this one. Good luck the rest of the way.