The Greylock boys’ cross country runners had a less than ideal start to the season, losing the first race to their main rival Lenox. This hiccup was not as much a poor performance on the teams part as it was bad luck as Greylock’s top runner and senior captain Carter Stripp was suffering from cramps that day, resulting in a 17th place finish, subpar to his usual standards. An opening race like this might have been a confidence blow for most teams, but the Greylock runners decided to shake it off and show their resilience by bringing home a clutch win on senior night, the last home race of the season: “We managed to come back and put on a strong performance [that day],” said Stripp, who grabbed fourth place. “Everyone ran great and it was a big confidence boost.” Jake Kobrin, another senior captain, beat his personal record by over 20 seconds on senior night and feels “faster than ever.” The confidence they gained from this result carried over into the Mounties’ next race as they put on a stellar performance the very next week on Monument Mountain’s course, coming in first place with a wipe out victory over Monument. Stripp and junior Tommy Kirby came in 2nd and 3rd place in that race, respectively. The Mounties will be competing at Lenox in a few weeks time looking to avenge their loss from the first time around. Jake Kobrin remarked, “I feel that we are getting faster relative to Lenox… If we prepare well and are in the zone, we can definitely take them.”

With strong results such as those of the last two competitions, propelling Greylock to a 7-1 record, the team does not have much to worry about for the remainder of regular season. Right now, as Stripp put it, “we have our eyes set on a fifth consecutive Western Mass title.” According to Kobrin, “Lenox will be back, stronger and faster than before, but we will be ready to match that.”