Henry Domine is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Arcadia High School for AZPreps365.com

Arcadia begins its postseason at the Scottsdale District XC Meet on Wednesday, Oct. 19. The Titans will face all of their rivals from the Scottsdale Unified School District.

This meet is unique for the Titans. They know all of the teams on the starting line, offering a clear and unblocked view of all of the runners in the race.

Most of the meets Arcadia has competed in this year have had starting lines packed with close to 300 runners. It's nearly impossible to follow a close rival, let alone a teammate.

Last postseason had two positives for Arcadia. Junior Kaileena Ferguson and Luke Sleeth, who graduated last spring, qualified for the state championship.

The girls team however came up just short last year missing the state meet by just five points at the Division II East sectional. But this year they are trying to make a push toward state.

Coach Tyler Moore said, “This year we are trying to get over that hump and look to be a top five team in the Division II East sectional race.”

Their last meet, the Glendale Showcase did not see a Titans team at full strength, due to fall break and athletes not racing.

Moore said about the results from the Glendale showcase, “I am happy with the results today, but we are missing a couple of our top five girls and getting healthy.”

Ferguson said about her personal goals for the upcoming postseason races, “It really depends, I want to of course get under 20 minutes, but we will see what happens.”

Ferguson ran her personal record at sectionals last year and is prepared for another fast time and race to try and lead her team to state.

Leading the boys charge for state is senior Scott Gurley, who missed out on the opportunity to go last year. But this year he is looking forward with hope.

“I’m super excited for districts and I am really confident that I can PR,” Gurley said.

This is the point in the season where runners want to run their best times. Gurley’s confidence is not only for himself but also his teammates.

“I am also very confident that the team will do well," Gurley said.

Senior newcomer Xavier Ortiz spoke about his emotions going into his first and only cross country postseason. Ortiz talked about how his coaches are giving him a lot of positive advice.

"Coach (Sarah Boustila) keeps telling me to keep running and you will do well," Ortiz said.

Boustila also shared her thoughts on the expectations for the team’s postseason.

"The girls should be outstanding, the boys it’s a tough bracket,” Boustila said. 

Looking farther forward down the road towards sectionals, she added, “We are aiming to make to the top teams so the girls can make it as a team to state.”

Around the Arcadia cross country program, the excitement is building for the postseason race, among coaches and athletes. They will have only a few more races to show what their hard summer training has built.