Led by senior Josh Warren and freshman phenom Mary Valli, the boys’ and girls’ cross country teams swept the Region 4-AAAAA championships, sending both teams to the state competition tomorrow in Carrollton.

Warren was also named the individual region champion. For anyone who watched him compete this season, this honor would not come as a surprise. His senior season has been a memorable one. He broke the school’s 5K record in early October at the Asics Invitational in Douglasville with a time of 15:48, besting former Panther Austin Enriquez’s record by one second.

Valli’s victory in the individual race was the icing on cake of her stellar season. She was consistently ranked first on the girls’ team and set the school’s freshman girls’ 5K record of 19:00, also at the Asics meet. “Mary is one of the best runners that we’ve had in the three years I’ve been on the team,” junior Sophie Handel said, “and the fact that she is just a freshman is amazing.”

Although cross country is not quite the spectator sport that football or basketball is, that did not diminish the rivalry between the Mill and McIntosh. Tensions were high before the meet among the runners and some of the spectators.

“The McIntosh’s girls’ team was ranked first in the state, so taking them on at the region level was incredibly daunting,” junior Sarah Phinney said. To prepare for the matchup, the girls said coach Anne Chrzanowski advised them to drink lots of water and stay off social media. “She didn’t want all of the posting that the McIntosh girls were doing to get into our heads,” Phinney said. Their dedication paid off as the Lady Panthers beat the Lady Chiefs by 18 points.

“The competition was fierce as the McIntosh runners sped up behind us,” Valli said. She said they all had to work hard to beat McIntosh and all of the other teams that came ready to run.

The boys’ team faced less challenging competition, but its achievement was no less significant. Warren, Alex Casado, Joshua Tysor, and Kevin Hilinski placed in the top six, securing the team’s place at the top of the podium. “Winning regions is a big accomplishment, and I’m excited to see how we can do at state,” said teammate and varsity runner Will Dearman, who is a junior.

The boys who will compete at state are Warren, Tysor, Hilinski, Casado, Nick Bryant, Reed Livingston, and Jordan Jones. The five alternates are Dearman, Connor Childers, Jack Corrigan, Connor Donahue, and Caleb Tysor.

The girls who will compete at state are Valli, Sims, Handel, Phinney, Tori Nails, Hannah Fertig, and Makira Walton. The five alternates are Ana Bankey, Camille Free, Natalie Free, Katie Rosenhoover, and Dori Turnier.

The runners’ outstanding performance at the region meet is a reflection of the strong season both teams have had.

“I felt really good at the start of the year,” Casado said. He and his teammates prepared for the region meet for months. “We trained all summer, so I was ready for the season.  I felt like my times have shown that.” Casado gradually improved his times as the season progressed. At the Providence Invitational in Charlotte, N.C., on Aug. 23-24, Casado started the season with  a time of 17:25. The boys’ team placed 12th overall at the meet, while the girls placed 11th.

Then at the Nike Panther Invitational in Peachtree City at Heritage Christian Church on Sept. 6, Warren trimmed a blazing 25 seconds off the clock to finish at 17:00. He recorded his absolute best time of 16:35 at the Asics meet, by far the best time of his career. Overall, the boys’ team placed seventh and the girls placed fourth.

Everyone on the varsity teams had the opportunity to meet with Olympian and American record holder for the 1,600 meters, Alan Webb, who came to the Nike Panther Invitational at Heritage Christian Church to talk to the runners. The night before the meet, he spoke to the Starr’s Mill and McIntosh teams about why he joined his high school’s cross country team in Reston, Va., and what they could do to improve their individual times.

“He talked to us about what he has done in the past to help him run and prepare for meets,” Bryant said. “He really stressed mental toughness and that pain tolerance is more important than speed.” Webb told a story about how he put a picture of his biggest rival winning the state meet next to his light switch to inspire him every night before he turned off the light and went to bed.

“You can  learn a lot from a 2004 Olympian like Alan Webb,” Valli said. “It was really fun to get to meet him and to listen to what he had to say.”

At the Nike Panther Invitational, the boys finished seventh and the girls third.

At Carrollton High School,  the site of the fourth meet in mid-September, the boys finished 14th and the girls finished fourth.  Then two weeks later at the Aubrae Gunderson meet in Conyers,  Warren finished ninth among all student runners.

Warren and Emily Sims, the school’s best senior runners, have had a great deal to do with the teams’ overall rankings in meets the last month and a half.

“As a coaching staff, we are overall very pleased with the season so far,” Kesterson said. “The athletes are in great shape, working hard, and very excited about the upcoming state championships on Saturday,” Kesterson said.

Some of the runners are hoping for a place on the podium. “It’s super exciting and I absolutely cannot wait to compete at state,” Sims said. “It’s really been a wonderful season and we have all worked so hard. All of our dedication is paying off.”