The Panthers recently competed at the cross-country Peninsula Athletic League (PAL) finals on Nov. 9 at Hallmark Park, with the boys team placing 12 out of 16 teams with a score of 263, and the girls team placing 10 out of 14 teams with a score of 245. 

  Burlingame had been working hard to prepare for PAL finals. 

“Our coach brings us up to the course to run workouts there every weekend, so the race felt very familiar,” senior Cooper Glavin said. “We also did a time trial a couple weeks before just to simulate the race, so everything felt very rehearsed, and I knew I could [qualify for CCS].”

Varsity runners Cooper Glavin, Sonja Dommen, Brendan Creeks and Livvy van Hamel Platerink qualified for CCS, which were held on Saturday, Nov. 16 at Hallmark Park. Last year, Dommen, van Hamel Platerink and Creeks qualified for states. 

“At this point it becomes really individualized and everyone has different goals,” Glavin said. “For me, I was just glad to make it [to CCS] and I’m hoping to just end strong and get prepped for track. The rest of my teammates who made it are all shooting for states … [and] I think everyone’s in a pretty good spot overall.”

After the cross-country season, many runners begin preseason training for track, which begins in the spring.