The Atoms junior varsity and varsity girls cross country teams began their seasons with their first invitational on Saturday, Aug. 25, in the Great Meadow 5K, hosted by Colgan High School.

In total, the Atoms had eight runners go out to race, three of whom were freshmen running their first race.

“The Great Meadow Invitational went exceptionally well this year. I believe each runner exceeded expectations at the meet,” coach Phil Harris said.

The meet featured great races by both sophomore Julia Ghiselli and freshman Daniella Dosen who both placed second in their respective races.

“With a rather young team this year, we have a lot of great freshman girls who come out with athleticism and are committed to improve in the sport consistently,” Harris said.

With an idea of where the team stands after the first invitational, Harris noted what must be done to prepare to have a successful season.

“I plan to have the team improve on their endurance through long distance runs at practice. I also want to do 800 and 1,000 meter intervals to work on speed and agility during races,” Harris said.

The Atoms’ next meet for both the boys and girls team will be at the 2.98 mile Monroe Parker Invitational at Burke Lake, hosted by Robinson High School. It will be held on Saturday, Sept. 8, 2018.

“The team will be well prepared to be successful in the Monroe Parker and will achieve greatly improved times since the start of the season,” Harris said.

From times earned during time trials for various distances, Harris adds that his goal for the team is to win the district and qualify for the regional meet.

However, there will be ample time to achieve this goal as there are still seven meets to go in the regular season before the conference meet.