Hillsboro coach James Rhoades enters his second year of coaching the boys cross country team after winning the South Central Ohio League in 2014.
The numbers are down just slightly compared to last year with seven boys runners on the team for the 2015 season.
The Indians have two returning seniors, which the team will rely on heavily for leadership and example.
“I am impressed with the work that both of the returning seniors have put in so far this season,” coach Rhoades said of his seniors for 2015. “Makenzie Conlon and Zach Middleton standout as great role models for both the high school and middle school boys teams. They are two individuals that are not afraid to put in the necessary hard work required to be a great athlete.”
Even with lower numbers, coach Rhoades thinks his team still has fighting chance of returning back to the top of the SCOL and making it to districts.
“This year will be just as challenging as every year is,” Rhoades said of the 2015 season. “Cross Country is a sport that I think has taken off in the past few years. It appears to be pulling in new athletes from all over the league, so it will be exciting to see how we will stand at the end of the year. As a team we are going to be relying on several new and young athletes, but I think our team has a great chance of running back at Rio Grande for districts.
Coach Rhoades also wanted to send out a big thank you to the people that make his team’s success possible. “In addition I would like to say thank you to all of our parents, volunteers, community members, and school staff for going out of their way to help all of our student athletes achieve their best.”
Reach Robert Stegbauer at 937-393-3456 ext. 1679 or on Twitter @RStegbauer.
