The varsity boys cross country team placed first and the girls placed second at its first meet of the season at Shawnee Mission South on Thursday, Sept. 4.

Junior Derek Meeks came first of the 149 runners in the boys race with a time of 10 minutes and 58 seconds. However, he is still looking to improve.

“I didn’t do as well as I was hoping to do, but I was glad the team won,” Meeks said. “[The meet] went pretty well.”

Junior Ben Gillig said the meet is a good start and that the team is looking to get better.

“We had lots of good performances and lots of room for improvement,” Gillig said.

Runners confronted hot and windy weather at the meet, which affected the team.

“It was really hot so we had to hydrate throughout the day, but still, it’s going to affect you,” junior Ben Gillig said. “But you really just have to focus on doing your best because everyone’s going through the same thing.”

Meeks said that despite the weather conditions, runners still performed well.

“The course was tough and it was hot, hilly and windy but we had good times across the board for boys and girls teams,” Meeks said.

Meeks said he is excited for the rest of the season.

“I’m looking forward to hanging out with all my teammates and getting better as the season goes on,” Meeks said.

The cross country team’s next meet will be at Paola on Saturday, Oct. 13.