A season summary of the 2024 cross-country team and its accomplishments
Staff Writer
This year, American’s cross-country (XC) team had immense personal and team growth. Their stand-out performance was the Mt. Sac Invitational: the biggest high school XC meet in California, with over 12,000 runners in 100 races. American secured first place as a team in the Men’s and Women’s D1 3 Mile Sophomore races. This meet, a testament to the team’s drive and talent, is one of their many successes in the 2024 season.
The team’s performance at Mt. Sac showcased both the team’s present skill and the promise of the younger runners. “Mt. Sac was such a great experience. It was really nice to have an opportunity to do such a famous course,” said Brianna Su (10), who placed fifth in the 3 Mile D1 Sophomore Women’s race out of 102 runners with a time of 21 minutes and 33 seconds.
Brianna Su running in the Mt. Sac 3 Miles D1 sophomore girls’ race. Su came in 5th place with a time of 21:33 (Photo Credit: Aneek Mandal (11)).
Underclassmen like Su have especially stood out. “We have improved significantly this year, especially the sophomores and freshmen. They’re a huge part of our varsity team,” said Abhi Soi (11). “We can continue this streak of success by continuing to put in the work—coming to practice every day, conditioning over the summer, and not bailing. We have to stay consistent.”
The coaches used fresh perspectives and their positive mindsets to encourage the team. “We wanted to build an environment where runners would want to come back every day and push their limits,” said Coach Javier. “We had many athletes get multiple personal records throughout the season.”
Especially key to the team’s success were the new training strategies implemented, which the assistant coaches picked up from their time in college. “Students who started conditioning from the first week already had ten weeks of preparation before official practices began. By then, they were running 30 miles a week,” said Coach Javier.
Training also included practices in Coyote Hills in preparation for courses with challenging terrain, which was particularly beneficial at Mt. Sac. “Mt. Sac was the most difficult for me because it was very hilly, but I knew I could do it so I kept going,” said Su.
In an intense sport like cross-country, the coaches emphasized a focus on mentality this season. “My brother and I always say cross-country is a mental sport, so we always encourage our runners to fight off negative thoughts. We tell them that they should just try their best so they can focus on that sense of accomplishment,” said Coach Javier.
Their philosophy helped the team not only excel at Mt. Sac, but at other key meets including the Farmer’s Invitational, where the boys’ frosh team earned a second-place plaque in the 3 Miles Frosh/Soph race. AHS XC also succeeded in league meets—placing in the top three of eight teams each meet. At the MVAL finals, Gabriel Wang and Benson Tang, two first-time junior runners came first and second respectively in the JV boys’ 2 mile race with personal records of 11 minutes 33 seconds and 11 minutes 35 seconds.
For many runners, this season was a journey of personal growth and improvement. “My proudest performance was the opener. It showed me that I improved a lot and got a better time than any race last year,” said Carlos Enrique Arroyo (12).
Like Arroyo, Su felt pride in her improvement from previous years. “It was very surreal to place first in the MVAL opener. Last year, I took the lead for the first half of the race but ended up getting third place. This year has shown me how much I’ve grown.”
Participants in the 3 Miles D1 boys Varsity race posing after a race at Mr. Sac. Left-to-Right: Konnor Tan (11), Aneek Mandal (11), Abhivadya Soi (11), Gabriel Wang (11), Benson Tang (11) (Photo Credit: Aneek Mandal (11)).
Eagle Era 
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