So far, so good for the Half Moon Bay cross country team, who have competed well through two events this season.

The Cougars began the year by hosting the PAL opener at Half Moon Bay.

“Our varsity girls ran pretty well, and came out with an eyebrow raising victory over Aragon,” head coach Paul Farnsworth said.

Half Moon Bay had better get used to competition, because as Walker explains the field will be tough this season.

“Our league has a number of top flight girls this year,” Walker said.

The Cougars’ top girl is sophomore Chandra Anderson, who finished fourth in the opener.

One other underclassman to keep an eye on is freshman Natalie Strohm, finished at eighth. 

Sophomores Paige Williamson and Kyleen Freeburg round out the girls’ side which should be a force in the future, and seniors Emily Kelley and Alejandra Marin “both tend to get stronger as the season progresses,” according to Walker.

On the boys’ side, the team is led by junior Mitch Martin, who finished second in CCS Division 4 last year and will be primed to contend again. Juniors Alex DeBaets and Ryan Roberts join senior Dimitry Picchi in the top four.

A strong group of incoming freshmen have bolstered the group, led by Logan Marshall and Cory Cilia. Both are competing for varsity spots.

Walker claims to enjoy every season, win or lose, but with the team running well to start this year he might get more satisfaction out of the season than usual. “It’s a bonus that we are running well,” the coach said.

Story by Kevin Scarpati.  Questions or Suggestions?  Please e-mail:  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .