For the first time in school history, a STEM sports team will be represented in a CHSAA State competition!!
The boys’ cross-country team of Lucian Kasperek, Silas Pacheco, Jacob McCallister, Kylen Winslett, Blake Huhn, Westin Maymir and Cole Getting will race in the CHSAA 3A State XC Championship at the Norris Penrose Equestrian Center in Colorado Springs next Saturday, Oct. 29. Nicholas Leake-Jara and Andrew Hathaway will serve as alternates. The Spartans will join The Classical Academy, DSST Byers and Machebeuf as the teams coming out of 3A Region 5 to compete at the state meet.
The boys earned their spot by placing 4th in the team standings last Thursday at the 3A Region 5 State XC Qualifier, held at deKoevend Park. It was a sunny day, and the challenging course certainly made the boys’ hard work to qualify that much sweeter. Lucian Kasperek and Silas Pacheco earned All-Region honors (top 15) by placing 10th and 14th, respectively. Jacob McCallister placed 20th overall, narrowly missing All-Region honors. The team scoring came down to a tiebreaker, with our sixcth runner helping to put STEM over the top and earn a trip to State.
In the girls’ race, Abby Hullinger placed 31st overall, strongly ending her season. With a full squad of healthy runners, the girls would also have been in the mix for a qualifying spot: the future looks bright on the girls’ side with a few more runners on the team.
