Jay Journal: We’ve had some pretty good stats this year. How do you think the team performed this year?
Father Tillman: I have been very pleased with this year’s cross country squad. They had the highest finish for a Prep team ever at the Rim Rock Classic meet in Kansas. The Junior Varsity team finished 2nd in the same meet, tying for the best performance of a Prep team in that meet. Our second place finish in the Metro conference was our highest finish there in recent years. They have done very well and run consistently throughout the season.

Jay Journal: What did you think about the competition this year?
Father Tillman: We knew coming into the year that Millard West and Fremont were returning their entire teams that finished 1-2 at the state meet last year. We have been consistently ranked 3rd in the state behind those two dominant teams.

Jay Journal: Who were your best runners going to the State Meet?
Father Tillman: Jack Slagle and Ryan Eastman have been consistently are top runners all season long.

Jay Journal: What are some of the obstacles you’ve faced this year?
Father Tillman: We have had some varsity runners who were not able to finish the season due to injuries. They had fast times early in the season and their times dropped off due to their pains. I don’t know what they would have done had they remained completely healthy. Fortunately we had several improving runners able to step in for them.

Jay Journal: The team finished 3rd in the State Meet. Are you satisfied with that result?
Father Tillman: 3rd place was our expectation going into the meet and so I was definitely pleased with our place. The two teams that finished ahead of us had much greater depth than we had and had beaten us convincingly throughout the season.

Jay Journal: Was there anything that prevented the team from performing better?
Father Tillman: The guys all turned in top performances at state and were much improved over their times from last year at state. I don’t know if they could have done much better.

Jay Journal: Which of the runners outdid themselves the most?
Father Tillman: Ryan Eastman was more than a minute faster than last year at state. Jake Cimino was 40 seconds faster. Most returning runners from other teams showed a 20-25 second improvement.

Jay Journal: Do you have any projections for the cross country team next year?
Father Tillman: We have two of the top runners in the state returning next year along with three other strong returning runners so I am excited about the possibilities for next year.