For many students, autumn brings the promise of sharpened pencils, filled backpacks and long hours of homework ahead. But for the girls on the cross country team, it brings early mornings, dewy grass, and spikes primed for running—in short, racing season. They train all summer, honing their skills and preparing for the long miles ahead, led by head coach Bryan Cheek and his team captains.
“Four key leaders graduated last May and senior captains [Ashvika] Maddikonda and [Ella] Richardson had big shoes to fill,” Cheek said. “Those two led us through a great week at camp this summer and had the team ready to open the season.”
Despite early success, the road through the season has not necessarily been easy. The girls faced new courses and challenges, and days of practice cut off by two different hurricanes. However, Cheek said he is incredibly proud of how the team responded to these difficulties and overcame every trial.
“We had a great start finishing second at the Wickham Jamboree,” Cheek said. “Things got a little crazy and difficult to evaluate after that. It took a lot of trust in the process to get to the postseason with the right perspective. A second-place finish at Cape Coast Conference was the boost we needed. The girls carried that momentum into the FHSAA 2A District 4 meet where they found more speed and took home the first district championship ever for West Shore. ”
According to Cheek, the team’s success is the result of the hard work and dedication of every runner, from the most experienced seniors to the freshman duo of Selah Vignier and Elliana Falls, who have consistently been the fastest of the female West Shore runners through the entire season. Falls has been on the team since seventh grade and said running has been integral to her life for years.
“I’ve been running non-competitively since I was about eight, I’d say, and then I started running competitively when I was 11,” Falls said. “My mom did cross country and track in high school, and she’s always ran—she’s been running since she was 12, and she still runs. She really inspired me to start running. At first, I was worried about how early [practice] was but my mom told me that I could do it, so I started it. And I haven’t looked back.”
Ellie credited much of her success to her mother, Bethany, who said there was something extremely special about watching her children fall in love with a sport that she had always adored.
“It’s kind of funny to me that Ellie and her brothers run because it has been my thing for so long,” Bethany Falls said. “I started running at age 12 and still do. Ellie and her siblings were never interested. I love that they have developed their own passion for the sport. It’s always so fun to cheer your kids on but there is something special about cheering them on in something you are also passionate about.”
Since joining the team in her seventh-grade year, Ellie has consistently been a front-runner, breaking records and setting her own in the process. Bethany Falls said this is the result of her hard work and dedication.
“Ellie is really diligent about nutrition, stretching, hydration and rest,” Bethany Falls said. “This past summer she added personal training to build strength. We have modeled a lot of this for her but honestly, her research and diligence are more to her credit than ours. We support Ellie’s goals but have always told her she’s our daughter first and we love the person she is far more than any record she may achieve.”
The achievements Ellie has helped earn are some of the most significant in the history of the program. The girls on the varsity cross country team have set records on both rubber and grass tracks, earning some of the fastest times and highest results. They have earned the title of 2024 district champions, come in second at the regional meet and eighth overall at the state meet.
However, Cheek said that his goals for the girls are not limited to the track.
“One of my goals was growth in character, personality, ability and depth,” Cheek said. “We graduated four key leaders last year and will graduate two key leaders this year. I need my younger athletes to continue to grow and reach out to bring others into this great family. We have something very special going on right now and we need to lean into that strength to ensure it continues so future athletes can benefit. I hope we can continue climbing that hill, adding new athletes and start making some noise as a team.”
With each course measuring 5,000 meters across varying terrain, often under the heat of the Florida sun, the girls face new challenges in every race. However, Ellie said that she believes these challenges have helped her grow as a person overall.
“I’ve learned a lot about continuing even when you’re feeling terrible, about how to keep pushing yourself even when it’s hard,” Ellie said. “There have been a few races where I’ve thought, ‘I don’t think I can get through this, it’s getting really hard and I need to slow down.’ People pass me and I just keep thinking about how terrible the race is going, but I keep pushing through that and still finish well. I’ve learned it’s important to keep a positive mindset after the race, even if I feel like dying, because you know what, I did it.”
For Cheek, perseverance is one of the greatest skills a runner can have. He said that one of his most important goals for the year was failure—achieving it, understanding it and overcoming it.
“I’m a big believer that if you never fail, you’ve never figured out how far you can really go or how much you can really accomplish,” Cheek said. “Sports are a great place to push yourself to the point of failure. We have lots of practices and races during the season to push those limits. Push hard, find your limits. Let’s fail together, get smarter, stronger and more aware. I hope they take that lesson to heart. They got to see me fail this year, yet here we are knocking on the door of our best finish ever. I learn something new every day from these girls. Mostly, they remind me to stay young, stay grounded and have fun.”