SPASH Boys Cross Country Looks to Make Waves at State Meet

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David Keech
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Wisconsin Rapids (OnFocus)  – The SPASH Boys Cross Country Team is heading to the State Cross Country Meet today, and Head Coach Kevin Hopp has the Panthers running on all cylinders.

We caught up with Hopp for a few thoughts on the Panthers’ trip to Wisconsin Rapids for the state meet.

What have been the keys for success?

One of our keys to our season so far has been the close knit group that we have from our JV through our varsity.  Like any team, we have smaller sub groups within the team, this is especially true for us with having 64 high school guys on the team, but overall, our guys look out for each other and support each other and push each other to be better in practice everyday.  This was especially needed this year with some of the illness and injuries that we faced along the way, but our guys never wavered in their belief of what we could be as a team.
How has practice been this week?
Practice this week is just staying fresh and sharpening up, not much can be gained workout-wise this week, as the hard work was put in earlier in the year, but just making sure we feel good and build confidence this week with our runs.
Describe the fan support for SPASH
Our families and alumni are great at showing up and supporting our team throughout the year at our meets.  As a cross country team, we are used to not getting a ton of fanfare and that is okay.  Our guys know that the people who support us will be there and run around the course and on Saturday, a lot of our JV and Jr. High runners will be there to watch and cheer as well.  These guys are there everyday at practice and there is a great camaraderie there.
What are the keys for SPASH to achieve on Saturday?
On Saturday, we will ask our guys to do what we do every week:  To go out and put forth their best effort on the day, we have our race plan and we will stick to it.  We ask them to make us proud of their effort and I know that Saturday will be the same as it has been all year.

Cross Country Links:

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David Keech
Author: David Keech

David Keech is a retired teacher and works as a sportswriter, sports official and as an educational consultant. He has reported on amateur sports since 2011, known as 'KeechDaVoice.' David can be reached at [email protected]

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