Last year, the rise of classification newcomer Air Academy caught most of the 5A crowd off-guard. This year, however, there not so much as a hint of the element of surprise. Despite being a marked team all season long, the state meet result was otherwise much the same as last year.
The main difference from last year’s triumph to this year’s domination was the margin. Last year, Air Academy put up 63 points to 126 for second-place Mountain Vista. This year, that margin grew to 26 for Air Academy to 120 for second-place Fossil Ridge.
By cross country standards, 26 to 120 is a masterpiece of domination. In another sport, a win of this magnitude might well have qualified for mercy rule consideration.
Kadet head coach Chuck Schwartz wrestled with capturing the tension between knowing a big win was possible and the reality of getting it done of the course, “I knew we were ready to run well, but it’s such a tough field that I wasn’t sure until it happened. They really came through today.” Indeed they did.
The Kadets finished with five in the top eight of a typically strong 5A field. That, too, slipped by the modest pre-meet expectations of their coach, “I didn’t expect that, but this team doesn’t ever seem to quit surprising me.”
As big as the win was, it came with a large dose of anxiety. After staking a large early lead in the race, Kadet ace Bethany Michalak began to fade in the final half mile. Michalak relinquished her once-formidable lead just before the creek crossing. Four more competitors passed her by in the remaining quarter of a mile.
The Michalak Ferrari was running on fumes.
Her teammates, however, were there to pick up the slack. Cross country championships are won on the efforts of teams, not individuals, and Michalak’s teammates were already busy ensuring there would be no doubt about the outcome.
Junior Tessa Walter stood up as most notable among those teammates leaving no doubt.
“I focused on doing it for Bethany, especially her senior race. It was important that I pull through and execute for her because she really deserved to win, so I did the best I could to make up for her not having her best day today,” explained Walter.
Walter doing her best entailed running a 17:46 and claiming second place. Teammate Mariah Hook finished close on Walter’s heels in third with a 17:50. That, too, grabbed Walter’s attention, “When I saw one of our freshmen [Mariah Hook] come in right behind me, it was such a proud moment. I was so excited for her!”
Chamorra Cooper and Emily Beers closed out the Air Academy scoring in seventh and eighth, respectively. It would be two more places before any other team in the field pushed their second runner across the line.
The individual title fell to Denver East’s Rosie Mucharsky. It was Mucharsky who first patiently closed the gap and then caught Michalak at the creek crossing. In a season sprinkled generously without personal highlights, this win was an accomplishment on an entirely new level for Mucharsky. Asked if winning was in her wildest dreams at the start of this day, Mucharsky struggled to find words, “No, but like in my dreams, for sure! I look up to her [Bethany] so much.”
Earlier in the race, Murcharsky had been jousting with Walter for ownership of second place. Later in the race, she began to think, “Maybe, there’s a chance…,” and that was enough to fuel her pursuit. By the time Mucharsky crossed the finish line, only 17:26 had elapsed on the clock. In the second half of the race, she had not only claimed the lead but put up 18 seconds on the rest of field.
On a day where several races went undecided into the stadium, 18 seconds ranks as an impressive margin of victory. Only a junior, Mucharsky should have an opportunity two defend her title next year. For now, Walter and Hook rank at the top of those who will take up the challenge next fall.