The Falcon High School boysí cross country team overcame adversity and injuries to earn a place at the state 4A meet for the first time in three years. One of three seniors on the team was awarded a college scholarship.Seven student athletes qualified for the Colorado High School Activities Association state meet, held at the Norris Penrose Event Center Oct. 25. Will Boswell, Mitchell Carroll, Hunter Hughes, Bradley Sain, Mickey Sarafin, Reece Warren and Danny Watts ran for the FHS team.Despite a promising start to the season, the team had been plagued by injuries and illness and they were not expected them to advance to state. ìRight out of the gate, these guys finished second at the Cheyenne Mountain Stampede meet,î said Jay Watts, FHS track and field coach. ìThese are mentally tough kids, but they were a beat up team that clawed their way into state.îìWe had been battling Lewis-Palmer the whole season, and they were who we needed to beat to get in,î said Mickey Sarafin, FHS senior. ìIt was a shock that we beat them for the first time this season when we needed to. That was an exciting moment.îìMaking state itself was a huge accomplishment,î said Angel Sarafin, Mickey’s mother. ìThey were so excited to get to state that they wanted to enjoy the experience rather than worry about competing against the higher teams.î Palmer Ridge High School won the state 4A title at the meet. Falcon High School finished 24th.Mickey Sarafin signed a letter of intent to compete for Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, Kansas, at a ceremony in November at Falcon High School. The university seeks out student athletes from smaller towns and high school programs, where cross country is not considered the popular sport, said Brent Bailey, head coach of the KWU cross country team. ìThe kids that run in the smaller schools are mentally strong and physically strong,î Bailey said. ìI love going after those smaller schools. Last year, our women’s team won conference, and four of those girls were from classes with 50 kids. They’re the ones that want it, and when hit with adversity in college are going to be ready for it.îSarafin will be studying computer science at the small private university. ìSometimes, the kids from California are worried about it being too small, but we say, ‘It’s OK! We have a Starbucks,íî Bailey said.The seniors are making sure the program continues to grow after they graduate. ìWe have fun and try to involve everybody. We work on keeping old traditions alive,î Mickey Sarafin said.ìFrom a parent’s standpoint, the team was very much a family,î Angel Sarafin said. ìWhen Mickey started as a freshman, he was the slowest on the team. The seniors were great about taking them under their wing and encouraging them. As a junior and senior, he picked a freshman to mentor.îìThere’s that point where an athlete goes from athletic ability to belief,î Watts said. ìAt some time, the light just comes on and they go out there and do what they need to do. Then they pull their teammates along with quiet leadership.ìThis team could definitely return to state next year, and we’re poised to have a really good track season coming up.î
