Tomorrow morning,  senior Anna Schmitz along with seniors Haley and Kelsey Harris will line up to compete in the Cross-Country Sectional tournament together. The race will take place at White River Elementary School in Noblesville and will begin at 10:30 a.m.

According to head coach Mark Ellington, the girls have been training long and hard throughout the season and have spent the last couple weeks transitioning into quicker workouts so the team is not burnt out for the race.

“We set our schedule during the regular season so that when it gets to Sectional time we are prepared. We trained very hard throughout the season, allowing resting time in between for the girls’ bodies to recover. They are more than prepared to run,” he said.

Schmitz said the team is very well prepared for tomorrow. She also said the girls have been rigorously practicing since June and that they are excited for tomorrow. Kelsey also said the girls are ready and that the team will treat it like any other meet.

“I’m just treating the Sectional like another meet, similarly to what the team is doing. I’ll just make sure to get a good amount of sleep and continue to hydrate throughout the week,” she said.

While preparing for the Sectional tournament, each girl has set personal and team goals.

Schmitz said she hopes to score for the team and help the other girls in any way possible. For the team, she said she hopes for all the girls to place in the top 25. Along with Schmitz, Haley said she is preparing to achieve her personal goals.

“I would like to run faster than 18:00, and then move on to focus on Semistate and the State meets,” she said.

Ellington said the girls have had no previous problems with the course they will compete on tomorrow morning. It is a local course that is flat and fast. He said the team has competed well on this course and is confident in the team’s abilities.

“A lot of our athletes have run on the course many times. It is where our county meets have been held and we have run on it during the season,” Ellington said.

Haley and Kelsey both said that running together has helped motivate each other and has made running more enjoyable for them. Schmitz agreed by saying it is exciting having the twins on the team and they are great role models for younger girls on the team.

“It helps to have a sister on the team because she’s my speed and another person to run with and feel comfortable running with during the race,” Kelsey said.

Schmitz said the team has put lots of hard work and time into training for tomorrow and they are more than ready to compete.

She said, “The team is well prepared for the Sectional meet and the rest of the tournament.”