Pieces fell into place for Affolder, Loudoun Valley

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

Jacob Hunter was at an indoor track meet in December when he showed his dad a text message received from Sam Affolder.

Marc Hunter didn’t give the text a second thought.

“I said, ‘Jacob, that’s a prank. Sam isn’t coming to Loudoun Valley,” Marc Hunter said. “Someone got a hold of his phone and is pranking.”

Turns out that text wasn’t a spoof.

Fast forward a few conversations and a few months later and one of the top distance runners in the country was in fact moving from Carlisle, Pa., making the decision to attend Loudoun Valley High in Virginia for his junior and senior years.

And now, that Loudoun Valley boys cross country team that finished the 2016 season as one of the top teams in the Southeast, just missing out on a spot at Nike Cross Nationals, is poised for something even bigger.

The Vikings return six of their top seven and, with the addition of Affolder, go from a top 10 team to a national title contender and DyeStat’s preseason No. 1.

“There is a sense of excitement, of possibility,” Loudoun Valley coach Joan Hunter said of this season.

A school linked to high school indoor mile record holder Drew Hunter, Loudoun Valley is in the midst of creating a more-team oriented identity. Marc and Joan have been with Loudoun Valley since 2013, winning Virginia 4A state titles in 2015 and ‘16, and building up the program located in Purcellville, a town with just under 9,500 people.  

“Our program is finally on the map and running out here really, amongst any of the Loudoun schools has really stepped it up a notch, and that’s exciting for us to see,” Joan Hunter said.

Added Marc Hunter: “We are a small school, (but) we have a lot of other things going for us. We are out in the country, we have great places to run, very good school, parents are very supportive. (It’s) a culture of wanting a national level program.”

Those are some of the reasons Affolder decided to come. Born into a military family, moving has become second nature to Affolder.

After just a year spent in Carlisle, where he qualified for the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships with his brother Noah (now a freshman at Syracuse) and was part of the indoor distance medley relay that set the national high school record in March (9:56.18), it was time to relocate again.

Sam’s dad, Jason Affolder, got a job at The Pentagon in Washington D.C. Affolder explained The Pentagon does not have a strict limit zone where you can live, unlike previous locations. This opened up a myriad of options of where to attend school.

“I chose Loudoun Valley because I knew that this is probably where I’d be able to make the most improvement for myself, and these coaches know what they are doing and the team is really good,” Affolder said.

While it’s a sacrifice on Jason Affolder, creating a much longer commute to and from work, there’s excitement all around.

“We always lose kids like this to Fairfax County, and this has kind of turned in our favor,” Marc Hunter said. “We were ecstatic when it all did come to fruition.”

Added Joan Hunter: “Sam has a pretty outgoing personality and fits right in. I don’t think the kid has ever met an enemy.”

Affolder joins an already deep squad. Last fall the Vikings traveled to North Carolina for the Great American Cross Country Festival and placed third.

Senior Peter Morris is the top returner, as he won the 4A state title and qualified for NXN in Portland, Ore. He’s joined by senior Colton Bogucki and junior Jacob Hunter, both top 10 finishers at state. The Vikings ended last season with a third-place finish at NXR Southeast.

Morris thinks that knowing the competition and courses better will help the team be more successful.  

“Last year after we placed third, we thought, ‘OK, we’re returning the top six of the top seven guys, we knew we could just get better from there,” Morris said. “I think with Sam coming he just makes our team that much better with all his credentials, and we’re definitely hoping to be the best.”

While the end goal is to qualify for NXN, the Loudoun Valley boys cross country team is enjoying the process of getting better and perhaps making its first national appearance as a team.

“Every school that I go to, I’m always looking forward to helping the team,” Affolder said. “Coming here, I’m like, ‘Wow, I might not even be the No. 1 on the team.’ Trying to improve them? They need to try and improve me. That way we can all rise up and do really good.”