The girls, who were cheered on by a rowdy group of Kodiaks, were led by All-State runner, Kate G. '20, who finished out her career with a 12th place finish and a personal best time of 21:16 on the 5K course. Kate's performance puts her in the record books as one of the best runners in Kodiak history, leaving a legacy of commitment, hard work, grit, and leadership.

"Kate's presence on the XC team since her freshman year has completely elevated our program," Head Coach Jolly Cunha said. "Her leadership on and off the course has established the bar for future Kodiak runners and she has set high standards for others to meet. Kate is a winner in all aspects and her winning attitude impacts those around her, making them better runners and people."

Senior sisters, Autumn C. and Kylie C., competed in their first cross country season this year and made a major impact on the strength and depth of the team. In their first state meet, they both had personal records (PR) and finished with impressive 57th (Autumn) and 72nd (Kylie) place finishes to help the overall team to an 11th place finish in 2A standings. Juniors Brooke A. (82nd) and Heather H. (85th), who also made personal records for the season, ran solid races to round out the team performance for the Kodiaks.

"The addition of the Crow girls gave us the motivation to train harder and set higher goals this year, and our finish at state surpassed our goals," Coach Cunha said. "It was amazing to see the twins and Heather PR at the State meet, and I'm super proud of all the girls for gritting it out."

Overall, it was one of the most successful seasons for the girls' cross country team, a group that took home the Black Forest League championship for only the second time in school history (2016). Kate earned the Black Forest League Title for three consecutive seasons, winning the league races in grand style by holding off her competitors from Peyton. On Saturday, she made her last statement of her career by beating lead runners from Peyton and Grand View, who she had lost to a week earlier at the regional meet.

Girls & Boys Season Awards for Cross Country
Most Valuable Runner: Clay R. '20
Most Valuable Runner: Kate G. '20
Most Improved Runner: Nathan G. '23
Most Improved Runner: Heather H. '21
Kodiak Coaches Award: Orlando M. '21
Kodiak Coaches Award: Kylie C. '20

Every day is a good day to make a gift to CSS to benefit student-centered learning and an environment where students can thrive. Last week, we wrapped up the Annual Fund Claremont Challenge by securing 60 gifts of $1,962 or more. In fact, more than 70 families generously committed gifts and pledges at the Claremont level or higher, and we secured the $50,000 challenge gift. 

(All meetings will be on the 2nd Tuesday of the month)

Location: Red Rabbit Cafe, 124 E. Cheyenne Mountain Blvd.

Join Gala Co-Chairs Aubryn Bednar P '28, P '32, Brooke Rawls P '30, P '32, and Lee Ann Williams P'19, P'21, P'23, as volunteers come together to plan the 2020 Gala & Auction, which will be held April 18. Find a place to put your talents, whether as auction solicitor, class creation coordinator, sponsorship guru, decor and design leader, or in other areas. Connect with parents and grandparents across grade levels to plan our largest fundraising event of the year. Last year's event raised more than $130,000 for student-centered learning.

For more information on how you can help make the Gala & Auction a success, contact Aubryn at [email protected] or (561) 400-4671, Brooke at [email protected] or (317) 902-8157 and Lee Ann at [email protected] or (816) 806-8796. 

Sisters Xaia Z. '26 and Isabelle Z. '24 are winners in The Gazette's 2019 unfinished Halloween story competition, which received more than 300 entries from students across the Pikes Peak region.

Sixth grader Xaia won 2nd place, and 8th grader Isabelle won 3rd place. The contest called for 1st through 8th grade students to create a spooky 250-word ending to a Halloween themed story by staff reporter Stephanie Earls. We are so proud of Xaia and Isabelle!