While many areas across the state are wrapping up their respective district meets heading into championship season, the Baton Rouge and surrounding areas participated in the annual EBR Metro Championship at Highland Road Park on Thursday.
This meet is comprised of schools
in Baton Rouge including Livingston Parish, Ascension Parish, and surrounding
parishes. Metro brings together all the teams and athletes from
the area regardless of th school's classification.
Placing well in this meet is usually a sign of things to come for the teams and individuals heading into LHSAA
Cross Country State Championships in November.
While Parkview Baptist boys team is no strangers to the podium, winning back-
to-back state D3 championships in 2021 and 2022, it has been a
"Year of Firsts" for this group of young men.
This team, led by Coach Chad Landry, set some high expectations. Landry knows the talent of this team and is not surprised at where
the team finds themselves.
The top 6 boys on this team have been a part of
Parkview's XC program since 5th and 6th grade.
They set their sights on being included with the
perennial elite teams in the state. And to do that, the EBR Metro Meet was circled on the calendar.
As the season started, it was evident this group of boys were something special
and great things were on the way. Week No. 2 of the season at Episcopal Round Table was the first of "Firsts."
Senior Caleb Whipp broke an 18-year-old school
record and was the first Parkview Baptist runner to ever eclipse the sub-16
minute mark 15:54.13.
Junior Ethan Delatte also ran a faster school time than the
previous on this day. The school would see the long-time standing record be
eclipsed 12 times to date this season.
Week after week, the team has gotten
stronger, times have gotten faster, and scores have gotten lower. As the school record book has been rewritten, the school has also seen
senior Kohl Feucht eclipse the sub-16 mark 15:56.26 as well as Whipp besting his
time to 15:33.07.
Junior Aiden Monistere had a late start to the season but
became Parkview's first sub-15 minute runner at the Catholic Invitational with a
14:52.00.
Junior Reed Boudreaux also found himself eclipsing the long-standing
school record this season. Senior Konner Broussard has seen his efforts become
stronger meet after meet and been a strong leader in team unity.
"Our team is a bunch of
friends who run together," Broussard said. "We push each other every day both in and out of
practice".
"It's a tight knit group of guys and the coaching staff," Whipp said.
"Our team chemistry is what sets us apart," Feucht said. "We have been together
for years and we know how to push each other but also how to have fun."
These
boys can be found almost any evening after practice hanging out, playing golf on
weekends, hosting team dinners and studying the competition.
There have been a few other firsts as the season has progressed coming into the
EBR Metro Meet.
Parkview Baptist boys have seen themselves mentioned as a
team to beat by earning a #1 ranking Small School Classification by the Louisiana
Track and Field Coaches Association (LTFCA) October 9, 2023.
They also received
the highest Composite ranking in school history coming in at #4 in all
classifications behind 3 perennial powerhouses Jesuit, Brother Martin, and
Ruston, narrowly edging out Catholic High, a team that is always considered a top
contender in the state.
Coming into Metro, this team had a goal to win it all, and solidifying their position
among the best teams in the state. To accomplish this goal, it would take
beating a very talented Catholic-Baton Rouge team that has won this meet
consecutively dating back to 2018 and usually favored to take home the
hardware.
While they have battled each other during the season, it would come
down to who had their best on a hot and humid October afternoon.
Coach
Landry knew if everyone ran their potential, Parkview was going to be happy with
their results on the day.
The boys executed their strategy, as they knew it was
more important to focus on placement than it would be for focusing on times.
Parkview would win the Team title as well as having a runner placing first overall
(Monistere 15:27.59) for the first time in school history.
The team
secured the victory by placing all five scoring runners in the top 15 (1, 6,7,8,
14).
"I am extremely proud of all of the young men for all of their accomplishment this season, including winning the school's first boys EBR Metro Championship," Landry said. "This is a special group of young."
Their work is not finished as they have Division III Region 2 championship
Thursday, and then LHSAA Division III State Championships on Monday, November 13th. The team is looking to "Three Peat" but are not taking the competition
lightly and Coach Landry will have them focused.