The men’s and women’s cross-country teams’ seasons drew to a close on November 5, as the men’s team competed in the NCHSAA 4A division with senior Yichen Sun placing tenth with a time of 16:06.65, earning all-state recognition.
While the women’s team didn’t make it to the state championship, placing sixth at the regional meet on October 29, senior Nora Daley represented the team and placed 37th with a time of 19:43.38.
Both Sun and Daley competed in the state meet all four years of their cross-country careers.
The men’s team took first place at the DAC VII Cross-Country Championships meet on October 19 at the WakeMed Soccer Complex in Cary, with Sun coming in second place at 15:51.00. The team had three other runners who placed in the top ten, with junior Declan Harden finishing in fourth place, senior Cogan McMichaels in eighth place and junior Jack Berreth in tenth place. Harden ran a personal best time of 16:02.50.
The women’s team placed third at the DAC VII Cross-Country Championships meet behind Riverside and East Chapel Hill High School, who took second and first place respectively. Daley finished third overall in a time of 19:12.50, while freshman Kate Hinson-Hume took sixth place with a time of 19:54.50 and senior Chloe Solum took ninth, finishing in 20:20.50.
“I think we exceeded all of our own expectations, and we’ve seen a ton of improvements, especially among the younger runners,” Daley said.
Daley set a personal record early in the season at the Greensboro Cross-Country Invitational on September 24, crossing the finish line with a time of 18:55.99 and contributing to the women’s team’s second place finish. Similarly, Sun set a PR of 15:46.12 at the NCRunners Elite invitational on October 8 in Kernersville.
Daley also won the meet against Jordan and East Chapel Hill on October 12 with a time of 20:34.08 on the Tigers’ Senior Night.
“Senior night was fun. I ran the third fastest time that has been run on that course, which was exciting,” Daley said.
While Daley had to deal with the physical obstacles of a difficult course, sophomore M.J. Mestas said there were also mental obstacles that she overcame this season.
“I would say this has been a very successful cross country season for me. I didn’t meet every single goal I had hoped to, but the mental challenges I faced and overcame in races and overall as a runner helped me grow a lot more than anything else,” Mestas said.
Sun said the men’s team also faced challenges, particularly at the beginning of the year after several fell ill.
“We had some setbacks due to the coronavirus and other illnesses that went around the team, but everyone improved substantially from the beginning of the season to the end,” Sun said.
This was also head coach Joan Nesbit Mabe’s final season coaching the cross country team after serving ten years in the position. She is a former long distance runner whose highest honor was a bronze medal in the 3,000-meter race at the 1995 IAAF World Indoor Championships. During her coaching career, Mabe guided the team to six state championships and five second-place finishes at the state meet.
While this season marks the end of both Mabe’s and Daley’s storied careers, Daley said she’d be keeping tabs on the team from afar.
“I am excited to see where the team goes next year! I’ll be checking MileSplit from college,” Daley said.
