Echoing throughout the halls, the sounds of the drumline couldn’t be missed Thursday during advisory when the school hosted a state send-off for the girls’ cross country team that is set to defend their state championship in Saturday’s UIL 5A state meet at McNeil Park near Austin.

“There is a lot of pressure just because of how well our team did,” junior Amelia Jauregui said. “But we understand that teams change and people have gotten better and it’s tough to maintain that no spot is guaranteed for anyone. We just want to go out and do our best and if that means we medal that’s awesome. If we don’t medal, we will be happy with our performance hopefully.”

Most of the team has ran at state before, but as the only freshman out of seven girls’ taking the starting line, freshman Jada Williams is leaning on the upperclassmen for advice.

“I’m very excited especially since it’s my first time,” Williams said. “My big sis Amelia and the seniors have been really helpful with giving me tips and just everyone’s been helping me here and there.”

Before embarking on the long car ride down to Austin, the team will make a quick stop in town for some final preparations.

“We’re going to The Star to do some practice and we are going to do some ice baths and relax our muscles before we run and then we are going to head to Austin and settle in,” Williams said. “We know it’s gonna be a difficult and we’re all really going to have to push ourselves. I’m just hoping to be happy with how I perform and I hope that everyone else feels the same way.”

Head cross country coach Amanda Zambiasi hopes to continue their success after last year in the school’s third consecutive year making state.

“I believe this group has the ability to do great things on Saturday,” Zambiasi said via email. “I expect the girls to show up and run their best race. I can’t wait to see their successes.”