While the 2020 season for the Fountain Hills High School cross country team was cut short, the Falcons were still able to put in hard work that head coach Nick Goodman believes will pay off for the young team of Falcons in the future.

The cross country season began on Sept. 9 with the team of 10 underclassmen competing against squads from Cortez, Notre Dame Prep and Saguaro.

While the Falcons’ small roster prevented them from placing high as a team, many individual runners posted impressive times during the season.

At the Titan Invitational on Oct. 8, three freshman Falcons – Josh Ball, Caleb Lara and Dylan Romans – finished in the top 20 for Division III boy runners. Erin Hooley came in third place for all Division III girl runners. Five other runners – Tyler Irvine-Violette, Zion Atwood, Tim Lamar, Skye Alker and Eliana Bartman – also finished the Invitational with personal best times.

Despite the unusual season, head Coach Nick Goodman is happy with the performances of all the runners on his squad.

“The season went great for all the cross country Falcons,” Goodman said. “All of the athletes had significantly improved on their home course times, with the probability of two athletes, Josh Ball and Erin Hooley, qualifying for the state championship.”

Unfortunately for the cross country team, however, chances of qualifying for state were dashed when Fountain Hills High School had to close for two weeks due to a COVID-19 outbreak.

Despite that, Goodman believes that the experience gain during this abbreviated season will pay off for the runners in future seasons.

“The team was very disciplined in their training and racing,” Goodman said. “They worked hard, never gave up and always finished strong. As a young team, they have a lot to build on, including strength and endurance, but that comes with age and practice.”

One point of pride for Goodman, beside his runners’ performances, was that the team was able to keep everyone healthy and safe.

“The team adapted very well to the COVID restrictions,” Goodman said. “It was not ideal to wear masks and take body temperatures every practice, but they all complied, which is why we never had any illnesses or quarantines.”