Upload a Photo Upload a Video Add a News article Write a Blog Add a Comment
Blog Feed News Feed Video Feed All Feeds

Folders

Featured (1723)
News (0)
Roads (1)
All (1940)
 

 

Loudoun Valley Delivers Historic Performance To Win First NXN Crown

Published by
DyeStat.com   Dec 3rd 2017, 5:41am
Comments

Virginia program sets pair of NXN records to earn boys team title

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

With all apologies to Drew Hunter from his father, this one topped them all.

Drew, a graduate of Loudoun Valley High in Virginia, was in attendance Saturday in Portland, Ore., at Nike Cross Nationals to watch his parents, Marc and Joan Hunter, coach the Purcellville XC boys team, featuring his younger brother Jacob, at Glendoveer Golf Course.

So just like Drew's title-winning effort in 2015 at Foot Locker Nationals in San Diego, the record-setting performance by Purcelville was indeed a family affair.

Led by Peter Morris placing 12th on the 5-kilometer course in 15 minutes, 29.9 seconds, Loudoun Valley produced the lowest winning score by a boys team in the meet's 14-year history with 89 points, along with the largest boys margin of victory to prevail over Fayetteville-Manlius NY (159) and third-place Mountain Vista CO (163).

"I'm a team guy, so even having a son like I have and he's run some great races and obviously had some record performances, but I've got to say this tops it and I hope he's not offended by that," Marc Hunter said. "But he knows I'm a team guy."

When Drew Hunter clocked 14:55.7 at Balboa Park in San Diego and won by 12 seconds, it was one of the most impressive efforts in Foot Locker Nationals history. But the adidas professional, who now resides in Colorado, experienced more anxious moments watching Saturday than he did during his own championship run.

"I was more nervous watching them than I ever have been. It was a weird feeling. I wasn't running, but I felt as much nerves as they did," said Drew, the national high school record holder in the indoor mile.

"After two miles I was pretty sure they won. At first, it was a sense of relief. I could finally relax a little bit."

Sam Affolder, who transferred during the offseason from Carlisle PA, finished 23rd in 15:37.3 and was completely exhausted after the race, requiring him to receive precautionary medical attention.

"To give it my all for the team, I'm proud of how I raced. I might not have been the No. 1 individual on the team or not had the best race of my life, but I gave everything I had to stay on that course and there's nothing I'm ashamed about," Affolder said. "It's been such a great group of guys that took us in with a humble, championship attitude and mindset coming into this race. This whole season has been about this meet."

Following Affolder's transfer, the team was ranked No. 1 in the country from the outset, relying on a strong top four that included Colton Bogucki, Jacob Hunter, Morris and himself. That allowed Loudoun Valley the ability to work throughout the regular season to develop the depth on its roster necessary to succeed in the postseason.

"Obviously we had a bull's eye on our backs from the start and my boys took that as a badge of honor. You would think they would melt at some point, but they didn't," Marc Hunter said. "I knew there was a lot more in the tank, but I didn't realize there was going to be this much more."

Bogucki was 37th in 15:48.6 and Jacob Hunter finished 43rd in 15:52.4 for Loudoun Valley, which also had the top No. 5 runner in the entire race in Connor Wells-Weiner taking 95th in 16:23.4.

"It's overwhelming, but I think it just reinforces all the hard work we've put in," Morris said. "Just being able to say that this is what we got out of it is amazing. We're not just about one guy, we're about the entire team and that's why it feels so good that we won this together."

Chase Dawson (16:28.4) and Kevin Carlson (16:31.8) weren't far behind in 108th and 113th place, meaning Purcelville could have replaced two of its top five with their results and still held off Manlius, which became the most decorated boys team in NXN history with its fifth podium finish, including a third runner-up effort, along with 2004 and 2010.

"They believed in themselves, which was huge today. I know that at Nos. 6 and 7, they may not feel like they're the most important, but when they're right there with our No. 5, they know they could be our No. 5," Affolder said. "Everyone from school knows about this and so everyone will be asking, 'How did the race go?' Whether they say they had a good race or a great race, they can tell everyone that they're one of the reasons why we won the national championship."

The previous record for lowest boys score was Christian Brothers Academy NJ with 91 points in 2011. Great Oak, which was expected to battle Loudoun Valley for the title before placing sixth for the second year in a row, boasted the previous mark for largest boys margin of victory at 49 points during its 2015 national championship effort.

"We're from a small town, but this just shows that anywhere you live, you can make a team, you can make a name for yourself and you can be the best, as long as you put in the hard work," Morris said. "If you want to put in the hard work, then you have a chance to do something great."

It was a journey for the Hunter family that started with many of the athletes before they were in high school and culminated by becoming only the second Southeast Regional team to make the NXN podium, including the first champion in either gender.

"We've been working with some of these kids for a long time. We've had a couple of them on our youth team since they were in sixth or seventh grade," Joan Hunter said. "It's just been great to see them develop as athletes and to work together and do this great thing."

Downers Grove North IL finished fourth with 187 points, elevating from 12th last season. Springville UT, 15th last year, placed fifth with 200 points. Christian Brothers Academy NJ was seventh for the second year in a row, accumulating 221 points.

At-large entries Desert Vista AZ and St. Francis Mountain View were eighth and ninth in their NXN debuts, with Carmel IN rounding out the top 10 in its first appearance since 2014.

 



More news

History for DyeStat.com
YearVideosNewsPhotosBlogs
2024 1091 354 13762  
2023 5382 1361 77508  
2022 4892 1212 58684  
Show 25 more
 
+PLUS highlights
+PLUS coverage
Live Events
Get +PLUS!