The Parkland girls and boys cross country teams have experienced much success this season thanks in part to what they did before the season started.

“Our success in part is because of the summer training,” said coach Stephen Ott. “We put a considerable amount of training in this summer. We had the mindset from the beginning to train fast, so we can race fast. Those that did the training are leading our team.”

The girls squad had a solid showing in a competitive PIAA Foundation Invite on Sept. 21, finishing 24th out of 47 schools. The boys took 22nd out of 51 schools in the same meet.

The top finishers in the race for the girls were Brooke Labenberg, Emily Beers, Ava Pugeda, Ava Bendetti, Stephanie Snyder and Lily Goense. The boys top finishers were Ethan Warren, Logan Iacobelli, Michael Schmitt, Benjamin Esquieres, Christian Dzema, Nathan Reimer and Josh Beltrame.

Three days later, the girls and boys also experienced more outstanding results in a Lehigh Parkway meet against Freedom, Liberty and Bethlehem Catholic. The girls’ scores were 20-43, 28-27 and 19-44 against Freedom, Liberty and Becahi, respectively. The boys took care of business 21-40, 22-37 and 15-50 versus Freedom, Liberty and Becahi, respectively.

“Since the season started, we have been working paces and repeating hills in preparation for the postseason,” said Ott. “Each race helps us fine tune goal paces and distances. Our student-athletes need to be aware of these to help them reach their full potential.”

Ott has focused on getting a consistent effort out of his runners day-in and day-out.

“Sometimes, they need to push themselves when they are not feeling their best,” said Ott. “Other times, they need to control themselves, even though they are feeling fresh.”

The regular season is nearing its end. Ott wants his runners to use the remaining races wisely.

“Each race helps our student-athletes prepare better for the next race,” the coach said. “Each one is a trial to see how to find better success. Many of our top student-athletes were not on varsity last year. Their confidence grows with each race because they see the fruits of their labor.

Ott likes the mix of veterans and newcomers.

“It is a great combination of these runners and our returning varsity ones,” he said. “It is such a pleasure to coach each of our runners. I am proud of their accomplishments thus far, but I remind them that they haven’t won anything yet.”

Correction: Last week’s Parkland cross country recap gave credit to the wrong runner for leading the team against Easton and Northampton. Freshman Brian Warren finished fifth overall in that meet to lead the team.