Cross-country: Lowe making her final season count
For much of high school, a common thread among the students is that they want the clock to accelerate.
They want time to fly by, first to the winter holidays, then to Spring Break, and finally to summer.
Senior year is something that they can’t wait for, until finally, it’s here.
Now approaching the end of her last season, Sage Hill girls’ cross-country captain Julia Lowe is feeling morose about the impending conclusion of her career with the Lightning.
“I’m really sad for my season to almost be over,” she said. “I love the team so much.”
That seems to fit the bill for Lowe, a team-oriented athlete who recently referred to herself as “the mother” of a team that is riddled with underclassmen. Mothers have a hard time letting go of their children.
As young as the Lightning are, Sage Hill is still expected to bring home the Academy League title on Thursday when it competes at Irvine Regional Park at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday afternoon.
This time of year brings back good memories for Lowe, who called winning the league’s individual crown her sophomore year the “biggest milestone” of her career.
Personal accolades aside, Lowe simply could not ignore the perks of being on the team, particularly since her younger sister, Olivia, joined the team last year.
“It’s fun because she’s a sophomore, and we have a lot of sophomores on the team,” Lowe said. “I’m friends with her friends, and it’s a fun group of kids.
“It’s definitely fun to come home with the same stories and experience the same things.”
Lightning coach Nate Miller has headed the program for 16 years. He has enjoyed coaching this group as much as any of his past teams because the chemistry has been there from the start.
The team even got together to make tie-dye shirts the Saturday after it ran the Mt. SAC Invitational.
“There’s usually some kind of drama, or infighting, or cliques,” Miller said. “The last two years, we’ve been really fortunate that the girls have really gotten along as a unit.”
The Lightning will be looking for the school’s third league title on the girls’ side.
Sage Hill’s boys have their own aspirations, looking for a top-three placing as a team. That is the goal set forth with St. Margaret’s and Crean Lutheran likely to battle it out for the title.
Sophomores Kylen Patell, Greg Suhr, and Luke Nataupsky will spearhead that effort.
The Academy League holds seven schools, meaning that teams must finish in the top four to advance to the CIF-SS Preliminaries.
Brethren Christian’s boys have worked their way out of the league’s cellar since head coach Deryl Dyson arrived in 2013.
Although a team berth in CIF is unlikely, the Warriors are holding out hope that one of their own can advance as an individual.
Gabriel Reiser is the runner in question. He placed ninth in the first cluster meet before taking fifth the second time that the league gathered.
Individuals must place in the top six of the league to advance.
“For Thursday, it’s about seeing if we can get Gabe in the top six,” Dyson said. “His goal is to let the top two or three kids go and then focus on the next pack.”
The Warriors’ coach knows that Reiser will have his hands full running with the second group. One mistake could cost him dearly.
“There’s a whole bunch of kids in that 5-to-15 range that are pretty close to him and pretty packed,” Dyson said. “A little bit of a slip and you can end up 12th instead of fifth.”
