Boys Cross Country
Beginning of the frosh-soph race on Sept. 28, 2022
October 20, 2022
The Millikan boys cross country team has amassed an impressive resume for their team throughout the beginning of their season by placing fourth, second, and even first at invitationals. Varsity isn’t the only division that has been
doing great, JV and frosh-soph have also been performing just as admirably.
QUEST Junior Jason Parra, the top runner, said at the start of the season, “I think that the future of the boys Millikan Cross Country team will be a lot higher than we think it is. I think that a lot of the guys on the team just haven’t found their stride yet and once everyone gets unified and we all have a sense of a team and we all start pushing each other then we will have some really great success.”
On September 28, the first Moore League race, Millikan faced off against all public Long Beach schools, including Millikan’s cross-country rival Poly High School. The results of the race were great for Millikan. According to head coach Pedro Ramirez, Millikan’s Boys varsity created history by defeating Poly for the first time in three decades this year. Coach Ramirez has never before witnessed his team win all three divisions; varsity, frosh/soph, and JV.
Although this is a fantastic moment for the boys cross country team, the team was concerned about the race’s aftermath. After the race, injured runners Jason Parra (varsity), Jacob Fujimoto (varsity), and Evan Sailor (frosh-soph) were told to restrict their participation in practices and future competitions.
The runners will have plenty of time to recover, though. The runners’ second Moore League race is on October 11 at Signal Hill, and the Moore League Finals are on November 2 at Heartwell Park.
The boys are currently working even harder than before to attempt to end Poly’s winning streak as Moore League Champions. Please come out and support our cross country squad!
Monique Thomas • Oct 27, 2022 at 10:43 am
October 21, 2022
Dear Corydon Editor,
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country.” The article mentions the great accomplishments the Millikan boys cross country team has made this 2022-23 season. Machado mentions QUEST junior, Jason Parra, the top runner’s opinion on this years’ season. It is awesome that the Corydon is giving more representation of other sports besides what is popular. I happen to be on the Millikan Varsity girls golf team. Our season, also in fall like boys cross country, was very successful, with our team coming in 2nd place in moore league. We played really well this season with our new team. We have a lot of good skill on our team and girls that are committed to the game. Next year, we have very high hopes for being Moore League Champions for the first time in Millikan history! We will be advancing to CIF team in a few weeks! My teammate, Hailey Stoskopf and I both made top 6 in all of Moore League and are advancing to CIF individuals next week. My teammates and I would love for the Millikan Corydon reporters to come out and talk to us about our season and help bring more awareness to Millikan golf!
Sincerely,
Monique Thomas, Grade 11
Emilia Flores • Oct 25, 2022 at 11:27 am
On October 20, my cousin Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country.” The article mentions the significant achievements as well as the possible upcoming future for Millikan’s 2022-2023 country team run by Pedro Ramirez. A quote from a QUEST varsity runner Jason Parra establishes the potential of a solid team, “I think that a lot of the guys on the team just haven’t found their stride yet and once everyone gets unified and we all have a sense of a team and we all start pushing each other then we will have some really great success.” The article provides a great perspective on how hard the runners have already worked and with a sense of unity, they will go far in the Moore League season. The article also does a great job at being inclusive of a variety of people, providing specific names of people involved in this sport. A range of information is given as Machado also mentions information about the history of each individual team (Frosh/soph, junior varsity, varsity) as well as what they have accomplished as a whole. As someone who does not have a substantial amount of knowledge on Millikan’s boys cross country team, It gives me a deeper look into Millikan’s success in sports as a whole. Although this article is generally very inclusive, something that I would recommend to the editor would be to include more about the team’s dynamic and what they do as a group to be as successful as they currently are. What is the training like for the team? How far do they run each practice? What techniques and tips could you recommend to new runners? Answers to these questions can give an even deeper understanding of this sport as a whole. Thank you for providing such great information on the successes and future for Millikan’s Cross Country team.
Levi DIniakos • Oct 21, 2022 at 1:56 pm
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country.” The article mentions how great the Millikan boys’ cross country team has been doing in invitational races and Moore League races. Reading the article, I thought the encouragement that Jason Parra, the number one spot on the varsity boys cross country team as well as the team captain, gives the team is exactly what a great team captain should be like. Machado mentions the great victory that the team had on September 28, 2022, when frosh, junior varsity, and varsity all faced off against the other cross country teams in the school district and won all three races as a team. I like how Machado encourages his audience to come out and support the boys cross country team. I also admire how Machado does so well complimenting the team and giving them all the praise they deserve. I would suggest to him talking more about what methods the coaches use to train and encourage their runners on the team. How does the team do during practice? How far do they run each practice depending on their times in races? I think these questions will provide his audience a little more information about the fantastic boys cross country team that Millikan has.
Ulysses Knobbe • Oct 21, 2022 at 12:09 pm
Great Article! Hope to see more from you in the future!
Jackson Harney • Oct 21, 2022 at 11:53 am
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country”. I was really surprised to see how well Millikan’s cross country team has become with the class of 24′ in specific. This group of guys has really improved a lot since freshman year, and I can definitely see them winning more meets next year. I have talked to some of Poly’s runners and they are really flustered at the heart-breaking loss against Millikan; their first in 30 years! They are really determined to make a comeback next season, and I can’t wait to see what Millikan has to put up against them. With this new title of ‘Best cross country team in Long Beach” we are sure to attract incoming freshmen who want to pursue a running career at the high school level. But beware of Poly, as they are fixed on regaining their rule over Millikan. With the help of our varsity runners, this program can really expand and rise to the top of not only Long Beach, but in the whole southern California region.
Cailyn Delliquadri • Oct 21, 2022 at 11:50 am
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country”. The article covers all of the boys’ cross country races and events this season. I like how The Corydon covers different sports at Millikan and I think it is really important to the Millikan community. One sport that I don’t usually see much coverage on is dance. Millikan dance also has a lot of events that could be written about in The Corydon. For example, yesterday was the 5th Annual Millikan Dance Invitational. It’s Millikan Dance’s beginning of the year performance where intermediate ⅚ and advanced dance perform. The event also incorporates members of the community because many local dance studios are invited to perform and the dancers from the Millikan Dance Youth Clinic showcase their dances as well. Advanced dance will also be performing at the Spectrum dance competition and the Millikan Dance Winter Show is coming up. I think the dance team is often overlooked because most people don’t think of it as a sport but there are a lot of events and performances that, if covered by The Corydon, could strengthen both the arts and sports communities at Millikan along with Millikan’s community outreach.
Michael Bueno • Oct 21, 2022 at 9:57 am
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country”. The article greatly mentions the success of boys cross country which I find rather impressive. I really enjoyed the mention of creating history at the first Moore League Race. The fact that this team was able to make history by defeating our rival Poly for the first time in three decades is just amazing. I really enjoyed the emphasis you made on this point. I also enjoyed how you were able to interview one of the best runners on cross country, Jason Para, to get a real good understanding of the team morale. We can clearly see that the team is completely locked in and focused on winning that second Moore League race at Signal Hill and even the Moore League Finals at Heartwell Park. I love the attention you give to the injuries because it’s great to know how your classmates are doing with their sport. I look forward to reading even more about the boys cross country team later in the season. Thank you for bringing up the success of the boys cross country team and team updates to keep the students of Millikan fascinated on how special this group of boys are.
Kaitlyn Rollo • Oct 20, 2022 at 1:58 pm
On October 20th, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country” The article brings attention to the first Moore league race for cross country. Machado did an amazing job of bringing attention to an underrepresented sport. It would be great if Machado or another reporter could continue this and write on the other Moore League races too. My only criticism is that the article only shows the boy’s side of cross country. It would be great to show all the cross country teams not just the boys. The races are staggered so any reporter there would see both the boys’ and girls’ races. This would allow both teams across all levels to feel more appreciated. I was also wondering about whether the signal hill race is being reported on as it had already happened when the article was published. Overall, it was a fantastic article that helps show that Millikan has other sports. I loved how Machado tells the reader to come support our school’s cross country team. It is also great how Machado tells the reader when the next race is and where at. The only other thing I would add is what time the races are.
Andrew Mena • Oct 20, 2022 at 1:56 pm
On October 20, 2022, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country”. In the article, Angel addresses the current state of the Millikan Cross Country team and their prestigious achievements that they have made early on in the school year, including their victory against Poly High School and winning all three divisions for the first time in over thirty years, according to coach Pedro Ramirez. I can only imagine the pride and confidence that both Coach Ramirez and the runners must feel after creating such a historical moment in the teams history, and it only goes to show how hardworking and determined these student athletes are. Furthermore, runners such as the record-breaking Junior athlete Jason Parra and his thoughts about the current state of the cross country team and his teammates are included in the article, making confident and hopeful claims about the future of the team and the trust/confidence he has in his fellow runners. As someone who has met Parra in real life and shared a few conversations with him, the response he shares in the article seems exactly how I would imagine; even though he’s breaking records and claiming the top spots in numerous competitions, he always sees room for improvement in himself, his teammates, and the future of the sport as a whole for Millikan. This inspiring comment along with the friendly nature of Jason Parra also made me feel much more worried about the player and the team after reading about the injuries that he and runners Jacob Fujimoto and Evan Sailor reportedly succumbed to after the first Moore League race. Hopefully these injuries are far from serious, and I look forward to their quick and stress-free recovery. Near the end of the article, I also notice that Angel writes about the “upcoming” second Moore League race along with the final competition which takes place on October 11th and November 2nd respectively, however the article was published on the 20th of October, making me wonder when this article was written compared to its publication date. An updated article including the results of this race would be greatly appreciated, as I would love to stay up to date about the progress of the team through the Millikan Corydon. Nonetheless, I wish the best of luck to the future of the Millikan Cross Country team in the Moore League finals and would like to both applaud and thank Angel Machado for informing me about this astonishing and historical group of runners.
Emmett Wechsler • Oct 20, 2022 at 1:54 pm
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country” The article talks about the first Moore league race of the season at El Dorado park and a few other aspects of the Millikan Boys cross country team so far this season. What stood out to me the most was the quote from Jason Parra and his expectations for the team and his thoughts on our team as a whole. In the article, you talk about the Moore league opening race for this season. One thing I think could have been added to improve the article was to add some information on how cross country racing works, such as how the scoring system works, and the distance being run. I find it astonishing that the varsity team was able to beat their rival Long Beach Poly for the first time in 30 years. It is really sad to see and hear of three of our runners getting injured at the race, and I hope all are able to make a full recovery by the Moore league final race. It is really great to see support and an article about a sport that is often not talked about. Thank you for writing this article and for bringing to light what this amazing group of runners have accomplished so far this season.
Wiley Stroben • Oct 20, 2022 at 1:49 pm
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled, “Boys Cross Country” The article talks about the great victory that the Boys Cross Country had over Poly High School for the first time in 30 years. This gives great encouragement to the runners and gives them hope to be able to beat Poly High School in the finals. The members of the team did very well on their first Moore League race with a great sweep in all categories. I thought that it was amazing how you were able to get direct information from the coach and the runners about how they feel about their team this year. While it is sad that some of our runners got injured during that race they are ready to get back at it and have overcome their injuries. I do think that this year the Boys Cross Country team has one of the best teams that they have had in years and will continue to improve over all their races and will continue to win against poly. This year we can start our winning streak against poly that we will be able to maintain due to our strong runner and the experiences that they will get from every run and race that they complete. I believe that we finally have a chance to prove our running skill against Poly this year and expect the team to do great things from their running career.
Dylan Ball • Oct 20, 2022 at 11:59 am
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country”. The article mentions how the team has had a successful start to its season by winning the first Moore League meet. In fact, this is the first time that Millikan’s varsity team has beaten Poly’s in three decades. I for one know this because I am a part of the cross-country team with Angel Machado. I am also aware of the longing rivalry between the two schools. At our first meet, this was the first time Millikan was able to sweep all three divisions (Fro-soph, JV, and Varsity) in a while. As stated in the article, our coaches know that we will be able to win this year, because of how hard we have been training, and how we have grown together as a team. Though our Varsity team lost to Poly at Signal Hill, we still have a chance at winning finals at Heartwell park, because both schools are one for three (⅓) right now. Thank you, Angle Machado and Corydon for covering the Boys Cross Country team. I am glad that you were able to talk about our success at the first meeting. Although we lost at Single Hill, we all put on a good fight. Thanks again.
Joaquin Shin • Oct 20, 2022 at 11:56 am
On October 20, Angel Machado wrote an article titled “Boys Cross Country” detailing the recent successes the boys cross country team have achieved in their races. I haven’t been up to date with the recent races they have been competing in, so having articles concerning athletics of different sport teams across the school is very convenient and easy to access. Being on the track team myself, I know that the cross country and track teams don’t often get the spotlight in the school newspapers, so I feel glad for my fellow runners that they have the spotlight they deserve for their hard effort. The fact that not only have the varsity runners performed particularly well, but also the junior varsity and frosh-soph runners, is a huge accomplishment that definitely deserves a spotlight in school news. Despite suffering some setbacks in the form of injuries, I know many of the runners personally and I’m certain they can make quick recoveries. Although the article is detailed and gets straight to the point, there is a small error in the writing. Towards the end of Jason Parra’s quote, “each other” is missing a space in between the two words. Considering this is Machado’s first year at Millikan, I’m sure small errors will be non-existent as Machado grows and develops his promising writing skills. Overall, the article is a good read and I’m proud and glad that our boys cross country team is getting the recognition they deserve.
Zack Eastman • Oct 20, 2022 at 11:53 am
On October 20, 2022 Angel Machado issued the article “Boys Cross Country”. The article expresses the mass amount of success that the cross country team has been seeing during the start of their Moore League season this year. As a Millikan cross country runner myself, the information in this article is very factual and a great introduction to the start of our season. I personally love Machado’s mention of how all three levels have swept the race and won, something that Millikan has not done in three decades as previously stated. It shows that our team is going in a great direction and could very easily be reaching the top very soon. Jason Parra’s statement couldn’t have been said better, as our upcoming runners that are freshmen and sophomores are strong. As a junior, it is great to see that they hold a bright future for the team’s success. To add to Machado’s article, after our second Moore League race at Signal Hill we are still on track to be the superior team at Heartwell and win the finals after thirty years of no first place trophy. With Jason Parra back, and Evan Sailor ready to return soon along with Jacob Fujimoto, the Millikan Cross Country team is about to have one of the best career turning years in the sports history at Millikan. We can personally not wait as a team for our success, and thank you all for the support on the publishing of this article.