Paly Cross Country finished their season with a strong showing at States. Taking place at Woodward park in Fresno, California, Paly Girls Cross Country took home fourth overall with three runners placing in the top seven. Sophomore Kinga Czajkowska placed 5th, with Seniors Elizabeth Fetter, and Hillary Studdert close behind, finishing 6th and 7th respectively. 

For the first time since freshman year of Fetter’s high school cross country career, she made her way back to states for one last time. The team showcased their talent with exceptionally good performances from all the runners that competed. 

“I think the team did awesome,” junior Allie Difede said. “Most of the team PR’d and three Paly runners made it in the top ten.”

Junior Grant Morgenfeld wrapped up his outstanding year with another strong performance at States. Morgenfeld was the only boys runner from Paly to make it to States, where he placed 18th overall. 

“It was exciting to watch the girls team succeed at the state meet. I can’t wait to see what they can do in the coming seasons,” Morgenfeld (24’) said. “I was grateful to have the opportunity to run against the best in state. I hope Paly as a team can carry this energy into track season and continue to improve.”

The Vikings all together had a successful season and accomplished a lot as a team overall. With the loss of several strong senior runners from last year, the underclassmen had to step up to fill the gaps. Frosh-soph boys had an impressive season with outstanding performances from several runners including sophomore Ryan Kim. Kim looked back on the season with high remarks. 

“The season went pretty great,” Kim (25’) said. “The frosh-soph boys won every single league meet and were top 3 in every invitational excluding the first one. Frosh-soph boys also always had at least 2 athletes in the top 5 during league meets.”

Paly girls cross country also performed exceptionally well this season, with high finishes in nearly every meet despite challenging competition.

“Varsity girls was 2nd in most of the league meets,” Kim said. “However, the team that got first was Los Altos, a team that qualified for nationals this year. 

Although the season was successful as a whole, it was not without its challenges. The Vikings had to battle through adversity and injuries especially at this year’s CCS meet. 

“CCS was the most difficult for the varsity boys because one of our top runners could not run and there were two more injuries,” Kim said. “Even with these setbacks, we got 5th at CCS which is not too bad.” 

With the season reaching its conclusion, many runners look to carry this success into the track and field season during spring. 

Overall, the 2022 Paly Cross Country season was full of great moments and exceptional individual performances from runners on both the boys and girls team. After an impressive showcase at states from several runners, the team aims to continue their success into next season and make it even further as a team.

“The goals for cross country next year are to qualify for the state meet as a team and possibly even nationals,” Kim said.