Bittersweet tears streamed down Dripping Springs senior Alyssa Schroeder’s face as she hugged family and friends following Saturday’s UIL Class 5A girls cross country championship.
With the conclusion of the race, Schroeder, along with senior Sydney Cole, completed the final race of their high school cross country careers.
But Schroeder also recalled the success of a Tiger girls cross country program that completed its third straight trip to state Saturday. For her, reaching state meant passing on many of the team’s traditions to a young group of runners.
“It’s an all new team with a lot of younger members,” Schroeder said. “Only having two seniors on here, we’re leaving our traditions with (the younger runners).”
Marisa Parks, Dripping Springs cross country head coach and girls athletic coordinator, said reaching state in 2016 was memorable, based on the adversity the program faced.
Injuries and illness led to the shuffling of a group that reached the state meet in 2015. While the previous two trips to state were special, Parks said the 2016 group, dubbed the “Parks Army,” overcame those issues to reach state.
“The thing that was wonderful was that when one went down with injury or illness, the next one stepped up,” Parks said. “That’s what you want as a program. That’s what makes it a team sport.”
Reaching state also meant overcoming struggles during competitions as well. Parks said the program received a “wake-up call” following a third place finish at the 26-5A district cross country meet.
She said the program needed that wake-up call, which she believed help produce a second place team finish at the Region IV meet in Corpus Christi.
“These girls had to refocus and realize it wasn’t going to be given and it had to be earned at regionals and the state meet,” Parks said.
While finishing 14th in the team standings wasn’t the finish the Tigers wanted at state, Parks lauded the team’s ability to overcome.
Helping matters was familiarity with the course at Old Settlers Park, which the Tigers had run before, Schroeder said. Better course conditions also played a large role.
“It was good knowing beforehand that we had ran (the course),” Schroeder said.
While there will be tweaks and improvements to make for next year, Parks said she also sees how the culture of Tiger cross country continues to pass down.
“We’re family and the culture these kids create and maintain and pass down year-to-year is what creates it,” Parks said. “The new ones come in and embrace the culture. That’s what we need going forward.”
