Success at Cross Country Provincials in Trenton Park

With near freezing conditions and snow falling in the not-too-distant Highlands, 10 runners braved the cold, racing in the cross country running provincials at Trenton Park on Monday October 28.

Chelsea James ’29 was our first to run and set out with the strategy to sprint at the start to ensure she could be near the front of the pack. She did just this and pushed her pace throughout what would be considered her best race of the season, finishing ninth overall in a very competitive field of 130 of the province’s best junior runners. She finished this race very happy with what would be her final cross country race as a junior.

Link Choo ’29, the reigning junior male athlete of the week proudly represented KES as our lone representative in the junior boys race. Nursing some ankle discomfort from training last week, Link followed up an impressive regionals race with another strong showing, finishing 14^th in a field of 142 runners. We have been so impressed with this first year runner and hope to see him at many more provincials to come.

After a full weekend of hockey playing just down the road in the Sobey’s Cup where her team secured the championship, Heather Lawton ’28 took on the intermediate girls race and finished an impressive 14^th overall. The result made even more impressive considering the five games of hockey she played over the weekend.

The Intermediate boys team arrived eager to prove themselves after finishing second overall at regionals the week prior. Brin Lloyd '27 was our first boy across the finish line running his fastest race of the season with a sub 4:00 minute per km pace, an effort good enough to place him in the top 40. Not far behind him was Harvey Hadley '27 who followed up his strong effort at regionals with a gritty performance here, racing with calf discomfort and finishing 70^th overall. Jack Cosgrove '27 has steadily improved this season and was our next runner across the line finishing in 80^th place. This was certainly his finest race of the season. Close behind him was Nicholas Smith '28, who running as a Grade 9 in this race, showed that he can compete with best in the province. He has endless potential, and we look forward to seeing him in this race again next year. Max Proctor '27 rounded out our competitors in this race. Knowing the course well from our jog the day prior, he stuck to his race plan and strategically picked his moments to attack the course.

Less than 24 hours after helping secure the Sobey’s Cup championship for the KES Highlanders girls hockey team, Emma Lawton '26 competed as our lone representative in the senior girls race. She ran a very competitive race, finishing in the top half of the field. While assists may be more common in hockey, it can’t go without mentioning that she came up big with an assist on this day, lending her running shoes to a teammate who forgot theirs, reminding everyone what being a great team player looks like.

In the final race of the day and his last cross country race as a King’s-Edgehill student, Alex Graham '25 took to the course. With such a tight pack at the start, Alex took a fall early on but continued to push himself and race, running through bloody knees and significant gashes, demonstrating his grit and determination, a true testament to his character. While he may not have placed where he would have liked, this race and his story will live on for years to come.

All these runners represented the School well and should be proud of their achievements both on this day and throughout the season. We hope to see them all again in the spring with the track and field program.

The team would like to thank Ms. Lisa Headley for stepping in to help out with the team at provincials and bringing such a great energy to our group. This trip would not have been possible without the continued support of her and our Athletics Department, including Ms. Kim Shanks as well as our Head of School Mr. Joe Seagram. We would also like to thank Mr. Royce Sanford for his help in transporting us all over throughout the competition. A special thank you is in order for Mrs. Carolyn Andrews and Mr. Alan Dick, who have been instrumental in their help developing this program this year. A final big thank you to all of the families of our runners for their support and cheerleading throughout the season.

This race marks the end of our competitive season. We look forward to finishing the season on a high note, mixing in some competition, fun and games, and celebration. Each runner should be proud of their growth this season. To those returning next year, we hope to see you all again next fall.