ROCKINGHAM — It was the first time in his decade-long tenure as head coach that Reggie Miller had help leading the Richmond boys and girls cross country teams, and he appreciated the assistance.
Miller welcomed the school’s former volleyball coach Shellie Wimpey to the program with open arms ahead of the 2018 season, as he was well aware that her arrival would ultimately benefit both teams. And that’s exactly what happened.
“It was a little different … but I actually loved it,” Miller said. “Coach Wimpey did a tremendous job, and it gave me a chance to focus more on one team instead of two. It worked out good for both of us.”
Wimpey, who received a couple of Conference Coach of the Year awards after leading the volleyball team to back-to-back undefeated conference titles, took over the girls squad in her inaugural season. A former high school runner, she would chose to hit the trail with her team during practices in order to inspire and “hopefully get them to enjoy it.”
In the first-year coach’s debut, the Lady Raiders won a conference meet at Purnell Swett behind a second-place individual finish from junior Ariel Brown — the team’s lead runner. Fellow juniors Gracelyn Weatherford and Abby Calhoun rounded out the top five in Pembroke at fourth and fifth, respectively.
Those three would lead the way on the course all season, usually with Brown being the first on the team to cross the finish line, followed by Weatherford and Calhoun. That kind of consistent leadership, specifically Brown’s, amongst “a lot of new runners” was very important “and made them step up as leaders, too.”
The year would come to an end at the 4A NCHSAA Regional Championships in Kernersville a little more than a week ago. There, the Lady Raiders — led by Brown and her time of 23:41.27 — placed 14th overall as a team.
“It was a good first season. The girls worked hard and improved times throughout,” Wimpey said. “(Coach Miller) was awesome and I enjoyed learning from him. He is very passionate about the sport. I look forward to next year.”
Miller, able to focus solely on the boys, watched his team place second overall in the opening meet (its highest finish in 2018), 10th at the Smithfield-Selma Invitational and 17th at Regionals — a few of the Raiders’ top efforts this season.
Although only a sophomore, Carson Jordan “came into his own” and “led by example” with his performances in practice and during meets. Senior Gerardo Godinez was another big part of the team and was able to improve his time by a minute in a half by year’s end — getting down t
o 19 minutes for the first time in his career.
Also having an impact was junior Joey Nicholson, who also played soccer this fall, and senior Tyler Parker, a four-year runner who battled with injuries this season but was a “hard worker” who is “truly going to be missed.”
Nicholson finished with the team’s best time in the first two meets, Jordan led the way at the Sandhills Athletic Conference Championship race last month, and Godinez placed 84th to lead the charge in the finale.
Parker helped the Raiders in their quest for second in the season-opening meet at Purnell Swett.
“We had our ups and downs, but overall it was pretty good,” Miller said. “We dealt with a lot of injuries, probably the most I’ve ever had, but the kids never quit. They still came in believing they could win, and that’s the only thing you can ask for.”