Shorewood’s girls cross country team is shaping up to be the best in several years.
The Thunderbirds return a pair of state runners in Erin Johnson and Charlee Linton. Johnson, who finished ninth at the Class 4A state championships last year, is having another fine season.
“She’s setting goals and working hard to meet them,” Shorewood coach Dan Soler said.
Johnson is a runner who likes to stick with the pack and use it to pace herself.
“She responds well to competition,” Soler said. “It really inspired her to run her best. … She’s fiercely competitive. She knows who the top runners are. She knows what time she wants to get.”
Linton may have peaked at last year’s district meet where she nearly collapsed at the end of the race. A year’s experience has made her wiser.
“She has more strategy,” Soler said. “She talks more about pacing herself … She knows how to run against other runners. She’s also quite calm.”
Soler sees the Thunderbirds as definite state contenders not only because of Johnson and Linton but because of the depth behind those two. During some meets this season, Shorewood’s No. 3 or 4 runners were not able to race but the Thunderbirds didn’t see much of a drop-off because of their 5-6-7-8-9 runners.
“As a team we’re really coming together,” Soler said. “They are strongly connected with one another. They support each other. They run races together.”
The Shorewood boys squad also is a tight-knit group. The Thunderbirds’ pack consists of senior Joe Gladow, senior Alex Brock and junior Colin Wilkins.
“We’ve got three guys up front,” said first-year coach Miles Mason.
On any given day, any one of the three might finish ahead of the others.
“They’re a real solid pack,” Mason said. “They’re always running together as a group, even during practice and during meets. … They like to run through the pack and move forward through the race. They work well together as a group.”
The three take turns pushing the pace.
“When one starts backing off the pace, the others are there to encourage them and verbally give them a nudge, a little pick me up,” Mason said.
Senior captain Kane Thomas is currently the No. 4 runner on the team.
“He’s having a great season,” Mason said. “He’s improving every week.”
The five through nine slots are filled by freshmen and sophomores so the future of the Thunderbirds remains promising.
“We’re experienced at the front and have talented youth as well,” Mason said.
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