In the words of the Athletic Leadership Council, the size of the Cross Country team is at its largest in years! Unlike other sports, the Cross Country team runs as early as 6:30 in the morning! This year, there are five freshmen on the team including Lizzy (Elizabeth) Castillo, Kaelyn Matus, Sarah Ferris, Rachel Mauricio, and Kaylee Ashenfelter.

These freshmen have early practices and longer runs, then still have to go to school and complete their homework(?). How do they balance their academics with athletics , especially with having to wake up early and then still go to school. Isn’t that exhausting!? Mayfield Crier interviewed Lizzy Castillo, and this is what she had to say:

Crier: How long have you been doing cross country, and what is your favorite thing about being a part of the Cross Country team?

I’ve been doing Cross Country for probably two years now. 

Crier: What is your favorite thing about being a part of the Cross Country team?

I love the community, it’s so much fun. I definitely recommend joining if you are not on the team yet! 

Crier: How has it been adjusting to being on the high school team?

Everybody’s really nice, and if you’re not that fast, it’s fine. There’s different workouts and the coaches adapt the workouts to you and how much you can run if you can run.

Crier: Are you planning on continuing through high school and college?

High school, definitely; college, maybe. It depends on how I do in high school years and how I feel about the workload that may be in college.