The Owatonna Girls Cross Country team has been crushing it in their recent meets. They recently placed second at their last meet in Owatonna, on Oct. 6, and just placed second at their meet in New Prague on Sept. 27.

The Huskies have faced multiple challenges and obstacles throughout the season. They lost runner Anna Cox, who made the state tournament last season, to injury early in the season. The hope is that Cox is ready to run at the end of the year, strengthening their state roster. Coach Daniel Leer said, “We have other girls that have stepped up”. The weather also hasn’t helped matters at all. Captain Kaitlin Brussel said, “[Our biggest challenge was]probably the heat at the beginning of the year.”

The captains for this season’s team are Kiara Gentz, Anni Moran, Emily Jacobs and Kaitlin Brussel. They have worked hard to get their team ready for the rest of the season. Training is getting more intense as the team is improving, and the stakes are getting higher.The competitive atmosphere is extremely high in practice, because they do not want to slow down. They are just starting to step on the gas as the season comes to a close, getting better times than at the beginning of the season

The team has high hopes for the season’s end. Leer said, “We have a legitimate chance to compete for the Big Nine championship.” This group of runners are determined to meet that goal.

The team’s next meet will take place in Mankato on Oct. 12. They will run at the Big 9 Meet Oct. 18.