Eight years ago, Mandy Mindykowski came in as Thomas MacLaren’s new high school cross country coach with the goal of building a team around unity and community. 

That year, the school’s first year as part of the Colorado Activities Association, one athlete qualified for state, Jay Wood, who is now a runner at Colorado Christian University. 

Over the past eight years, Mindykowski has achieved her goal of developing a ‘family unit’ to lead the Highlanders’ to their best season yet with both boys, (No. 1 in 2A) and girls (No. 3 in 2A) vying for state titles at this year’s state cross country championships. 

A state title at Norris-Penrose Event Center on Saturday would be the school’s first ever state championship in any sport. 

“They are excited to inspire future generations,” Mindykowski said. “What it would mean for our school is showing this community that is so beautiful, and the gift of our hard work.”

Community is what the program and school are built around, and has been a part of the team’s success this season. 

“Oru school thrives off community,” Mindykowski said. “Something we instill in the students is that unity is important for them in their role as students. We bring that same energy to our athletic programs and really build that community spirit within them. It’s what sets this team apart and what has really grown our cross country team.”

Both teams have previously made it to state, but have never been as highly ranked as they are this season. Last year at state, the boys achieved a program-high third place finish in 2A while the girls finished 15th. 

After its third place finish, the boys’ team made it a goal to come back and win. While the team will be without their top runner, sophomore Braddock Hewitt, due to injury, they are still confident in bringing home the title. 

“It’s just a number, you can’t call us No. 1 in the state until we’ve proven we are number one,” senior captain Nate Dillavou said. “It will be hard without Braddock out, but I think we will pull it out. We are just really excited to race like it’s the last thing we’ve got.” 

From organizing pasta parties to helping the team achieve ‘pack running’ for the first time, the leadership of team captains Dillavou and Piper Shannon has been instrumental in building the program over the last four years. 

“One thing that sets the girls out is the leadership,” Mindykowoski said. “Piper brought the energy, and no matter what, they had a great time. That energy and leadership really led the team to where they are.”

“[Dillavou and Shannon] want to be positive role models and want people to see them as good humans, not just good athletes. That’s what we strive to produce at MacLaren, not these great athletes or how many wins, but the humans we are putting out in the world.” 

Shannon has seen the team evolve tremendously since her freshman year and is proud to end her high school career on such a high point, even if the girls don’t achieve the state title. 

“When I started as a freshman, we didn’t have a full varsity team for most races,” Shannon said. “This is the biggest year we’ve had with the number of girls. It’s been a consistent growth. We have learned to work as a team and use each other as support, and that’s allowed us to push the bounds of what we are capable of, and that is shown in our performances.”

The community aspect of the team doesn’t just come from the coaches or team captains, but also from those who came before them, including Wood. 

“Jay is the role model a lot of us look up to,” Dillavou said. “He showed us what we can do as a team. He wasn’t a great runner when he first came up, and he showed how to persevere through pain and that hard work will always win over talent.”

Wood, along with several cross country alumni from the past eight years, will be at the state championships Saturday to support the program. The Thomas MacLaren middle and elementary school cross country teams will also be present in a full display of the school’s community.  

The Highlanders have a chance at history, but the community they’ve built on the team may just be enough. 

“Both teams will have great competitors out there, but I think they are just ready to have some fun,” Mindykowski said. “I am so proud of where they are at and the community they’ve built in the sport and inside the building. The energy they bring into the school means more than the trophy.”