Girls X-Country: The few, the proud...

Lauren Peterson Most Valuable Runner, state meet qualifier

Quality trumped quantity for the Tiger girls this fall.

The entire varsity roster consisted of just 13 runners but that proved to be a lucky number for coach Heidi Revels who saw her team improve its finish in five of eight meets this season. Farmington ranked fifth in both the Missota Conference and Section 1AA meets in 2013.

"We had a good balance of returning talent and newcomers," Revels said. "We are fortunate to have a team of hard workers who want to do well both as individuals and as a team.

"Four of our the varsity runners set personal records at the section meet which showed they were peaking at the right time. Training outside the season is definitely showing results."

The seven runners who routinely made up the varsity lineup earned letters for their efforts: senior Maricia Pacheco, junior Sofia Chadwick, sophomore Maricella Pacheco, ninth-grader Sami Hyytinen and seventh-graders Lauren Peterson, Anna Palodichuk and Emily Schaffer.

Peterson had a breakout first season, earning team Most Valuable Runner honors while garnering all-Missota Conference honorable mention recognition and qualifying for the Class AA state meet.
The speedy seventh-grader broke a school course record at the section championship race in Owatonna.

Maricia Pacheco All-Missota Conference

Maricia Pacheco (pictured above) landed a spot on the prestigious all-Missota Conference squad while junior varsity runner Hannah Morgan was tabbed as the team's most improved runner. Palodichuk took home the Rookie of the Year Award and Chadwick won the Coaches Award for attitude and work ethic.

Other team members who comprised a quality junior varsity team included sophomore Morgan; juniors Alexis Smith and Sarah Cummings; sophomore Mariana Montbriand; freshman Kara Revis and seventh-grader Abby Bollig.

Revels said the only disappointment from the season just completed was the small turnout.

"We are always looking for more depth," she said. "There were a few meets this year where we couldn't field a complete junior varsity team."

Next year should bring continued success with only Maricia Pacheco lost to graduation but it will also bring some new challenges.

"I believe that these girls will continue to improve individually and their hard work will mean more success for the team as well," Revels said. "We'll be moving to the South Suburban Conference next year where the competition level is definitely a bit higher but I think we're up for the challenge."

Sofia Chadwick Coaches Award winner