The Mycenaean

On September 6, 2024, Leesville’s Cross Country team raced in the Friday Night Lights meet in Kernersville, NC.

The meet was at Ivey Redmon Sports Complex and had 12 races throughout the evening. Leesville had participants in the Girls and Boys JV and Championship races. 

The Girls Championship team placed seventh out of 33 teams and the Boys Championship team placed 13th out of 34 teams.

Not all the teams in Leesville’s region were there, but the Pride was competitive against those who attended, including Athens Drive, Laney, and Hoggard.

“It was good to see where we were at compared to the other teams,” said Kate Slobodnyak, senior on the Cross Country team.

The environment at Friday Night Lights was high-energy. The course ran throughout the complex, meaning spectators were cheering for the runners during most of the race. The Championship runners also raced at night, under the lights. 

Dozens of teams participated, and there were around 300 runners in each race. The meet sold merchandise, catered food trucks, and hosted DJ with a dance floor. At the end of the meet, there was a fireworks show to celebrate the effort of the thousands of racers.

Gavin Clewley, freshman on the Cross Country team, said, “The atmosphere was good, and it was fun getting to race with my team.” 

The meet was one of the more exciting races of the season, but it was also bittersweet because it was the seniors’ last Friday Night Lights. 

Slobodnyak said, “I really enjoyed hanging out with the team. Cross Country is a really big team sport so I liked seeing everybody… it’s my last year so I’m excited to experience all the different races.”

Both the boys’ and girls’ teams had strong performances on Friday, which bodes well for the season to come.

“I’m excited to run with my teammates and hopefully make states. [The meet] shows that we were a lot better than we expected to be,” said Clewley.