On a hilly, steep, and hot course, two brothers on the cross country team stood out in the boys’ open division at the final regular meet of the season, held at Bedwell Bayfront Park on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
“Sam and Will did fantastic today. It’s a good tune-up so that we can figure out where we put people as we go into the postseason, but overall, a great end to the season,” head coach Chris Coleman said.
Sophomore twins Sam and Will Mullen-Weaver, dominated the match, both setting new personal records. In the boys’ open division, Sam Mullen-Weaver placed second with a time of 18:21, and Will Mullen-Weaver finished 13th in 19:12.
While the Mullen-Weavers had a successful meet, the rest of the varsity team left in disappointment. Despite placing in the top five, girls’ varsity was more successful at their previous meet, the Clovis Asics Invitational. There, senior co-captain Stella Newman and junior Elizabeth Carroll both set personal records.
At Bedwell Bayfront, Newman placed fourth with a time of 19:39, and Carroll finished fifth in 20:03. The boys’ varsity squad also struggled to respond with the strength they had shown in previous meets.
“We had some people do really well, I think people are running well, and I think people are somewhat disappointed, but that’s because they’ve been pushing so hard, and they know kind of what’s at stake,” Coleman said.
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Sophomore Sam Mullen-Weaver runs to keep up with his opponent in front of him.
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While only a freshman, Claire Hwang continues to impress at each meet, consistently placing in the top five.
Bedwell Bayfront Park is an unfamiliar course for the team, making this particular race even more difficult. With mixed results, head coach Chris Coleman acknowledged those challenges.
“Some people want to run faster time, some people it’s the feel of the race, and so on, and this is a different course than most of the courses,” Coleman said. “And it’s different than Hallmark, it’s different than Half Moon Bay. We don’t run here very often, and so it’s new for a lot of people, and that makes it a little bit tough.”
For Will Mullen-Weaver, this course was especially difficult due to the hilly terrain and dust. As a result of his asthma, this affected his running.
With the regular season ending, the team is focused on sending a strong roster to compete both individually and as a team at the Peninsula Athletic League (PAL) Championships on Saturday, Nov. 1. Girls’ varsity will be eyeing to restore their state win from 2023, where they won the D-III Central Coast Section (CCS) championships.
On Nov. 1, both girls’ and boys’ varsity teams qualified for the CCS championships, placing third and ninth overall, respectively. Meanwhile, the girls’ junior varsity placed first in their competition, ending their season on a high note. The CCS championship meet will take place on Nov. 15.
“For some of our girls, some individuals, as well as our varsity girls, we’re really looking at CCS and seeing what we can do there, and seeing how we can get through to CCS, to really see if we have a chance to get back to Clovis in state finals,” Coleman said.
As they prepare for the upcoming meets, Sam Mullen-Weaver highlighted the strengths of their well-rounded team.
“I feel like our team is, like, very strong, and we have chances to go to state and CCS,” San Mullen-Weaver said. “I hope we can continue our run.”
