Mount Carmel is not a cross country-centered school. The distance runners are not what comes to mind when most people think of the Caravan.
In the most recent meet the team attended, their top three mile times didn’t even crack the top fifty among just thirteen other teams. No one on the current squad is getting a full ride to college for running.
But is there more to the story than a few numbers on some websites? Are some lessons learned or intangibles acquired that don’t exactly meet the naked eye?
Mount Carmel senior and Student Body President Christos Dimas would agree. He’s been running for all four years of high school, and he’s seen the team change as time has passed. While he says that he doesn’t necessarily like running itself, he feels that his mentors in previous seasons on the team have helped him.
“Kevin Jacobs, Andrew Sipple, David Auguste [all of the Class of 2023], those were literally the first guys who I met at this school, and they happened to be great not only in school, but in school spirit,” said Dimas. “They happened to be not only great students, but they were great people and great mentors that showed me the ways of leadership in the school and the ways of life. They showed me what men of Carmel look like.”
Dimas, a proven leader as Student Council President, chose to partially credit his former leaders as a reason why he has succeeded in the classroom and in athletics thus far. His underlings now look to him as the next generation for leadership within the team, and they see him as their mentor now.
Junior TJ Kolke is confident that Dimas has filled this role. “Kevin Jacobs used to be the heart and soul,” said Kolke. “He really cared about the team and tried to get us better. After losing him, Christos Dimas had to fill those shoes and he’s filled them pretty well. He’s made up for his decline in performance over the past few years by caring about the team, caring about our betterment. Christos leads stretches, and every practice he just works his tail off. He really takes control of the team.”
But with people who take control of the team and people who are more willing to get on players for slacking off, like Dimas, there are others who decide to take a more passive approach to development.
Cross country coach and Theology teacher Mr. Daniel Burke has a more “laid back” way of coaching. “The upperclassmen have been doing a really good job of making the new guys feel comfortable,” said Mr. Burke. “But they kind of free me up when they act like assistant coaches like that. I’m more laid back as a coach, I think sometimes it helps more to have other guys on the team say something corrective instead of having me say it all the time.”
After all, he’s right. Kids listen to other kids more than they listen to adults. Mr. Burke likes to leave it to the kids to develop each other’s “runners mentality” as much as he can.
“Sometimes if I see TJ slacking off while we’re running, I’ll literally yell at him,” said Dimas. “I’ll be dying, but you just gotta find a way to motivate during the meet.”
And Kolke agrees, though he is the subject of correction, that it builds character. “Christos understands the runner’s mentality,” he said. “He’s really good at helping these kids get better on their own. He sets a good example.”
Overall, what the team lacks in skill, they make up for in dynamic. They have great chemistry. “Seems like everyone gets along,” said Mr. Burke. “We got a good group.”
