It Has Been a Pleasure!: Thank You, and 2016 DIAA State Championships, Brandywine Creek (Review)

FULL RESULTS: GIRLS (D2), BOYS (D2)

Before I get into too far into the post, I want to say thank you to all our fans who have both kept up with the blog this season and come out to support us at the meets. Your viewership makes this blog worthwhile for me and your presence at the races makes a difference in how hard I push myself at the races. I really can hear you guys cheering for us as I'm out on the course!

First of all, I have to give a shoutout to Tatnall's Keelin Hays, the Division 2 Girls champion. She almost literally won the race by a mile, leading the whole way and finishing over a minute ahead of her closest competitors. I don't know that I've ever seen a performance as dominant in my seven seasons as a cross-country runner. As for Red Lion, congratulations to our girls on placing 18th of 26 teams. We had a young team competing against some of the best teams in the state of Delaware. To earn a result like that is an accomplishment worth celebrating and a vast improvement over last year.

As for the boys (and myself), I am very proud of how the team performed on Saturday. Josh earned a phenomenal top-35 finish and the team earned a 14th-place finish of 28 teams. To my teammates, congratulations; we finished in the top half in the state meet!

Full race results can be found in the links above. All our runners finished the season on a high note and most will be able to carry that momentum into next season. As for the seniors, it's been an incredible journey. 

To my fellow members of the Class of 2017: Noah, you and I have been there since the beginning. I don't know that either of us quite knew what we were getting into when we decided to come out for JV cross-country in sixth grade. But we persevered, improved steadily over seven years and experienced loads of success as teammates, and as captains. I am proud to have had you by my side every step of the way.

Calvin, you kept up quite well considering Noah and I had a three-year head start! I'm so glad you decided to join us in ninth grade; the team was (and still is) better for it. You've showed a tremendous amount of growth this season and gave me a run for my money on multiple occasions. You're certainly stronger than me in terms of shorter distances and continue to improve in the longer ones. I am grateful for your decision to join us and only regret that you did not start your career sooner.

Jonathan, your energy and excitement you brought to every practice was contagious. Coach Paul says it normally takes about two seasons for a runner to hit his or her stride and I certainly saw that trait in you this year. I can't keep track of how many personal bests you set this season; you set one seemingly every race! Although I was only your teammate for a year, I've enjoyed getting to know you and appreciate the contribution you made to the team this season.

To my coaches: Coach Pizzulli, you handled this transition year seamlessly. The Red Lion team more than doubled in size compared to last year and you still were able to give us each individual instruction at every practice and meet. Thank you for all you did this year, including letting us TOCS runners #RememberTheTitans by using navy blue last names on our warm-up shirts!

Coach Shirley, you also handled this transition perfectly. But why am I surprised? You handled the last five years perfectly. I am proud to be able to say that I ran under the same coach my entire five years as a varsity cross-country runner. You helped me grow into a much faster runner, pushing me to achieve goals and exceed limits I thought would never be possible. More importantly, however, your spiritual guidance has furthered my in my walk with God and I could not be more thankful for everything you've given to me these last five seasons from my first varsity race as an eighth grade to helping me display the #LionsPride in my senior year.

To all of you who have supported me over the years: it has been a pleasure; moreover, it really has been unbelievable! I've loved every minute, and I can't wait to see what's next. The future of Red Lion cross-country is bright with several young runners just beginning to hit their strides (no pun intended) and multiple runners on the middle school team who will make an immediate impact when promoted to varsity within the next couple of seasons.

As I said on social media yesterday, for now, all I have left to say is that it's been one heck of a ride. Thank you all.