A Clean Sheet and Metro Champion!

Monday and Tuesday, I was neck deep preparing for a three day divorce trial on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.  It was a lot.  

Because I had been preparing for a while, I was able to leave work a little early on Tuesday - to watch Joe and his MBA junior school team beat CPA (8-0) - and Wednesday - to watch JP run in the Metro Nashville Cross Country Championship Race.  

Joe's soccer team is really, really talented.  He's one a few seventh graders on a team that's at least half eighth graders.  Although Joe is the backup goalie, he's gotten playing time in the second half of every game so far.  He hasn't gotten a lot of action because MBA's defense is so sound that the ball rarely is on his end of the field.  I don't remember JP's junior school soccer teams at MBA being this skilled, top to bottom.  I am far from a soccer expert but I think this group will win a couple of high school state titles in the coming years. 

The win was the second shutout of the row.  Another clean sheet, as the soccer aficionados say.   

There had been some confusion around the location of the Metro Championship.  Initially, the Exchange, a runner store in East Nashville was going to host the race at Shelby Park.  At some point, though, the realization sunk in that staging three cross country races for a couple hundred high school athletes is quite an undertaking.  At the last minute, plans changed and the races were moved back to Vaughn's Gap, where they've been for several years.  JP was pleased because if MBA has a home course, Vaughn's Gap is it.

I arrived early, as I typically do.  For some reason, the varsity boys drove themselves to the race.  Traffic was terrible, so most of them straggled in less than an hour before the varsity boys' race.  I was concerned that JP might not be in a good place, pre-race, with the disruption of his normal routine.  As it turns out, he was fine.  I, of course, was nervous enough for both of us.  That will never change, I guess.

The field for the Metro Championship isn't nearly as fast as what the boys see in other, out of town races.  I expected JP to do well and I expected the team to do well.  Still, you never know.

As the varsity boys runners were warming up, I saw Coach Russ bring the boys together well out in front of the starting line.  I crept up and listened to him talk to them.  Next, in my favorite moment of any cross country race of JP's, the runners circled up tight and locked arms.  I crept closer.

Close enough to hear JP, Co-Captain, address the other runners.  His message was succinct and understated.

"Like Coach Russ said, every runner do his job."  

Next, in a moment I always will remember, Co-Captain Jack McDaniel ("McDavid," as the boys call him for reasons unknown to me), led the boys in prayer.  As I listened in and basked in what was simply a gorgeous fall late afternoon, my eyes welled with tears.  JP and Jack, friends at age 3, 4, and 5 at Children's House, leading the cross country team and preparing to run one of their last races together. 

On top of that, Jack is the best of the best.  Kind.  Intelligent.  A devout Catholic.  Humble.  Funny.  Earnest.  I'll miss seeing him terribly next year, after he leaves for college.   

Comically - and I missed this - JP was in the box, jumping up and down as part of his warmup, when the starter, without much warning, suddenly started the race.  After the race, JP and a couple of his teammates were still laughing about it.  Watch enough cross country races and you will see it all.

JP and Gabe quickly surged into the lead and it was clear that no one in the field was going to challenge them for the first two spots the race.  Gabe settled in slightly behind JP, on his shoulder, which is how they were running when they passed by me at the one mile mark.  Between miles one and two, JP started to put a little distance between him and Gabe.  The gap widened a bit on the third mile, as JP won comfortably and Gabe finished in second place. 

 

An FRA runner challenged Wynn Humphrey for third place.  However, Wynn sprinted to the end with a strong finish the last 100 yards and nabbed the third spot.  I loved to see how much effort Wynn put into finishing the race.  

MBA won the team titles for Junior Varsity and Varsity, as expected.  Roll Red!  

I can't believe it's my second to last Metro Championship.  One more next year and it's all over.  It's all going by so fast.