Broadus XC Ready For State

The Broadus cross country team competed in their final regular meet of the year, last Thursday in Joliet.

The Oylear brothers, Sean & Christian, crossed the finish line nearly together, running a 19:16 and 19:18 respectively. Broadus Head Coach Ashley Emmons told us she emphasized the psychological side of running to the boys, to help them as they look toward State, this week in Missoula.

Bradyn Stoddard-Terrill was still out this week due to lingering concerns of injury development, but he had previously qualified for State (as had the rest of the Broadus XC team), so he was resting and working back towards running in Missoula.

Reece Emmons ran a season best time of 24:19, while Addison Draine stayed consistent, running a 27:46, essentially duplicating her time from the previous two meets. Addison was within one second on three meets in a row. Coach Ashley Emmons told us that this consistency showed that Draine was definitely in-shape and had a solid running base to work with. She now could concentrate on speed in the final week to bring down her time at State, as they look to peak at the right time for Missoula.

The State meet course has two big hills that must be planned for, but the most important thing at this point isn’t necessarily the end time – it’s who the runner can pass to attain the best possible placing.

“It’s an all-out race,” Emmons stated.

The team will leave Thursday, staying in Livingston and potentially stopping in Columbus for a run along the river and to stretch their legs. On Friday it’s on to Missoula, where they’ll do a walk through of the course, before running those all-out races on Saturday.