NC’s Cross Country Team traveled to Cartersville and competed at the tenth annual Run At The Rock 5k hosted by Woodland High School on Saturday, September 3.

The varsity boys started off the morning strong, placing sixth overall. Prior to the race, Head Coach John Huff spoke with the top nine boys, discussing the hill in the second mile where the boys would have to physically and mentally prepare to race strong.

“As I approached the hill I realized how steep it really was, but the downhill was heavenly after straining every muscle to make it past the hill,” junior Matthew Terrill said.

After the first race, the varsity girls knew what to expect from the course. The teams running against the Warriors moved with high intensity, but the girls did not falter and showed great strength. Varsity runner Abigail Jeske clocked in first for NC with a time of 21:36.

Setting the pace as the Warrior’s top runner, Jeske took to the course with a positive mindset and set her nerves aside.

“I think the race went well. Our team was strong and really pushed through such a hard course. The hill was definitely a big challenge but we got through it and I was very proud of our team,” Jeske said.

Both the boys and girls JV teams raced strong, with the JV girls placing fifth overall and the JV boys clinching a trophy-winning second place.

“This race was difficult to pace yourself due to the huge incline near the beginning of the second mile,” senior Andrew Gasparini said. “I wasn’t really proud of my own time, but I am glad that I could work towards our JV boys getting second place. I’m always proud to be a warrior!”

While the course pushed all the athletes to their limits, each team raced strong and set the bar high for the rest race of season.