GROVE CITY, Pa. (WKBN) — It’s been 17 years since the boys Grove City cross country team lost a dual meet against another school.
“I think about how many kids have gone through this program and never lost a meet,” said head coach Ben English. “It’s pretty amazing to think, 17 years of winning seasons, not just winning seasons, dominating seasons.”
After years of domination, the program recently hit the century mark with 100 consecutive wins.
“We always know kind of where we need to be, because if we run together, we know that we can do the best possible thing we can do, and just go out there and win,” said senior Quinn McKnight. “During a race, if we don’t really know where we need to be, just find your nearest teammate and keep running with them.”
A lot of hard work in addition to talent is needed to reach that kind of feat, and Grove City certainly has built a tradition from an early age.
“Looking back, it was, I mean, super cool. I remember being in middle school and you look up and you see the high school kids,” said MJ Pottinger. “And just thinking, man, those guys are really fast. I want to I want to be like that. I want to be able to do that.”
Now, as a junior, Pottinger is doing just that, leading the defending state champion Eagles.
As they return to another talented team, there seems to be a key ingredient throughout the program.
“I think our teammates have something that’s super special that a lot of teams don’t have, to where it’s we’re all just pretty much best friends,” McKnight said. “We got 10 kids who every weekend we’re hanging out, every workout we’re together, every run.”
The buy-in goes from the schools and spreads throughout the community.
“We are a medium-sized school, but cross country is a really important part to Grove City and and the community,” English said.
This past Tuesday, Grove City boys cross country extended its streak to 101 straight wins after a dual meet victory over Slippery Rock.
