Carrollton XC 2012 - Fate or Redemption

Is this a story of redemption?

This sport has always had its upsets. On most occasions, those who are expected to succeed often do. But there’s a reason why we don’t plug in times and run simulations instead of competing: once in a blue moon, the improbable happens.

Hollywood has programmed us into believing that there are only two paths to the improbable in sports.   Either the underdogs overachieve or the expected victors fall short. There is one team here in Florida who has managed to follow both routes within 6 months. The 2011 2A Girls FHSAA State Cross Country Champions, Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart.  

There were few people in the state who expected them to win last year.  In fact, most analysts seemed to be split between Coco Beach and Bolles.  Amongst the minority, unsurprisingly, was Carrollton Coach David Alonso.  He recognized an exponential progression that other people simply didn’t expect to culminate as it did.  “In our first year of going to the state meet” he recalls, “we were dead last. Then we were top 15, then after that we were top 5.   After that…we won. After UF [Mountain Dew Invitational], we figured that we had a good chance in November. It just came down to everyone stepping up their A-game that day, which they did.”

If they were flying under the radar before, they certainly weren’t able to do so anymore. Now the entire State knew who they were.  There were higher expectations for them by the time the state track meet came around. Which made the fact that they didn’t even field a team seem painfully more poignant.   

Is this a tale of second chances?

With such an incredible high and low within a short period of time, it’s only natural to wonder why.  Why wasn’t this emerging team present at the FHSAA 2A State Track and Field Championships? Why did it seem like something was missing that was there just a few months before?

Injuries account for one answer. “There were some girls who were really important to us in Cross Country that were injured in Track” says Alonso.

Indeed, if there ever was a sport in which a team needs every available member to be healthy, it’s Track. While Cross Country is generally one set distance, Track is a conglomerate of different specialties.  If a team’s sprinters or field specialists are feeling sub-par, then a state title is practically a pipe dream.  

Without a strong, healthy core of distance runners, it’s almost impossible to win.  So much depends on so many different performers; an unanticipated result, the proverbial “monkey-wrench,” could ruin the chances a team had of even making an appearance.

This inherent diversity played against Alonso and his team. “We had to make-do with what we had… We had more depth than in cross-country, but we were a small team—that’s not saying much. We still had to send athletes to compete in events that really aren’t their forte. They had to do what they could to help the team, and sometimes they exhausted themselves in the process.”

So is this another chance? Is Carrollton focused on redemption?  Is this a journey of epic proportions?

In most literary epics, the hero must discover that the journey is more important than the destination.  The destination is a simply a location.  The journey is a process.  It is a culminating lesson, teaching the voyagers about the inner nature of their Self.  The journey the Carrollton girls have been on is no different. It has taught them about who they are as people and as athletes.  

“Our girls are extremely humble [about winning the state title]” Alonso assures. “They were so excited about it because of how their work culminated to this, but they were also just as excited about the future. They were already ready to get to work and train for next year.”

There’s a reason why he didn’t say “next season” or “train for Track.” After winning the state Cross Country title, the girls realized something about themselves: Cross Country is simply more fun.

“Track just sort of seems like a necessary evil [for them].  I have to continually send them on longer runs just so they don’t get bored with the sport. They love Cross Country and that’s what motivated them more than anything.”

It’s rare to find that in an athlete, much less an entire team.

Generally, the popularity and raw speed of Track counteracts any endemic allure Cross Country offers.  Carrollton, however, has developed a reputation for defying expectations.  Now the only question is what will be their destination, the zenith of their epic efforts?

Or, better yet, is the peak of this team’s potential even in sight?

This is a story without regard for anything other than the future.

The past could only weigh them down.  “I really don’t think that I, or anyone for that matter, could really classify last Track season as a failure. If you look at their performances compared to those from years or even weeks before, I’d say they performed well.”

Carrollton’s team has had to bear the scrutiny of the past.  Probing questions came in constantly, wondering what had changed.  People were questioning how a team could rise to the top and descend into the abyss in a matter of months.

But we as an audience have a tendency to obsess and hyperbolize.  

Fortunately, Alonso and his athletes aren’t afflicted with this issue. To them, the past can only serve to inspire and drive them into the future.  “We lost our number one and seven girls last year, but I think that the success of the past year will help bring in some new talent. Even with that, the girls are training hard. They feel that [because they are the defending champions] they have to work twice as hard this year. They’re doing the speed work, they’re putting in the miles. We want to try and win again and then maybe compete at the Nike Cross Country Nationals.”

But what separates them from the mere daydreamers is that they enter this year fully aware of their situation. They know they have to train harder and prepare themselves in order to be successful. They don’t rest upon the laurels of their past or let themselves be consumed by shortfalls. Their story is not one of redemption or of second chances. Their epic tale is continuing to unfold regardless of the controversy in the past. This is their story to be told.

This is a story of fate.

Hello. My name is Peter Licari and I’m a distance runner/ freelance writer. I’ve been running since I was in fifth grade and I’ve been writing for even longer. I ran for Hagerty High School under the tutelage of Matt Malkovich and Jay Getty. I was the MVP in Track and Cross Country for four years and currently hold the school record in every distance event and relay (and, incidentally, the school record for the most school records). While I was racing, I was also heavily focusing on my writing. I penned three unpublished, full-length novels and scores of published articles and poems. Running and writing are my two major passions and I pursue both of them with equal zeal. I managed to win four district titles and qualify for four state championships between the two sports. In regards to writing, I received the creative writing superlative at my high school for my stories and articles. I have been fortunate enough to be able to continue my running career on scholarship at the University of Tampa while being extremely humbled with the opportunity to write for Distance Preps. 

Read more from Peter HERE : DistancePreps.com - The Future Runs Now - Blogs - XC - Sport of the Dedicated http://www.runnerspace.com/gprofile.php?mgroup_id=31488&do=blogs&blog_id=5585#ixzz256SnLorK