AUSTIN, Texas — A first season is rarely defined by finish lines alone. Sometimes it's measured in the quiet miles before sunrise, in conversations about patience over panic, and in the uncomfortable honesty of admitting that growth takes time.

For St. Edward's men's and women's cross country, the 2025 season under first-year head coach Chase Rathke was less about instant gratification and more about laying a foundation sturdy enough to hold real ambition.

The results, Rathke admits, weren't exactly what the Hilltoppers envisioned when the season began. Injuries played an outsized role — most notably the loss of women's standout MIA RIVERA — and both squads limped into the championship portion of the year less than whole. But beneath the surface, something meaningful was happening.

"I was pleased with some things we did, and we have a lot of room to grow," Rathke said. "We made plenty of strides on both teams. Everyone bought into the culture we're trying to establish. This season set us up for what's to come."

That culture shift was intentional from day one. Rathke arrived determined to reset expectations — not just in racing, but in what it means to train every day in a sport that offers no shortcuts. Mileage increased. Base training was rebuilt from the ground up. The emphasis wasn't on peaking quickly, but on building something sustainable two, three, even four years down the road.
For a young roster, particularly on the men's side, that meant pumping the brakes early. Several newcomers hadn't logged consistent summer mileage, forcing Rathke and his staff to prioritize long-term health over short-term gains. The result was a slower start, but a stronger finish.

"Once we got our feet going, I thought we did well by the end of the year," Rathke said.

The men's team faced a unique challenge from the outset. Graduation wiped out all three all-conference runners from the previous season, and injuries compounded the turnover. At one point, seven or eight runners were sidelined, disrupting training groups and daily rhythm.

"Running might be an individual activity, but when you start losing that many people, it impacts training," Rathke said. "This sport is 10 times easier to prepare for when you have teammates by your side."

Through the churn, ARLO GONZALES emerged as the steady constant. Gonzales earned Academic Runner of the Year honors and an all-conference finish, placing ninth despite less-than-ideal conditions on a muddy championship course. His 23rd-place regional finish narrowly missed a trip to nationals, but Rathke sees Gonzales as emblematic of the program's direction.

"He didn't have the day he wanted," Rathke said. "But we've talked about the standard we want to set, the pieces we want to put together, and he's part of it."
Gonzales' success wasn't about aesthetic perfection. Rathke jokes that he's "not the prettiest runner," but he wields competitiveness and care in equal measure. Even on days when he looks like he's laboring, Gonzales delivers effort, grit, and points when the team needs them most.

On the women's side, the story was defined by resilience. Rivera's injury after breaking the program's 5K record at the Texas A&M Invitational reshaped the season overnight, forcing others into unfamiliar leadership roles. Before that setback, senior DELANEY LONG was enjoying a breakthrough campaign, fueled by a demanding summer and Rathke's insistence that she train alongside Rivera every day.

"I told Delaney early on that I wanted her up there with Mia every single workout," Rathke said. "I knew she was talented enough to do it, and I was going to hold her accountable to it."

Long responded, emerging as one of the team's most consistent performers before Rivera went down for the season. In Rivera's absence, new leaders needed to emerge alongside Long, and JENNA SAUNDERS answered the call.

Still managing lingering issues from a spring injury, Saunders leaned on careful coordination with the training staff and finished the season with personal records, closing strong when the Hilltoppers needed stability.

Others followed similar arcs. JULIANA MERLO fought through a summer-long injury that left her catching up in a marathon of a season, reclaiming her form for a solid regional race and recently dropping her 5K personal best by nearly 30 seconds in training. SAMMY SALAZAR opened the season as a dependable workhorse before a hamstring injury intervened. Adriana Rodriguez, Tori Ponce, MYLA CASTILLO, and MEGAN FERRELL all battled bumps and bruises but showed encouraging signs late.

Behind a senior-laden roster, the women delivered their best performance when it mattered most. At the regional meet, the Hilltoppers knocked off teams that had beaten them at conference, even while racing at altitude.

"Several women ran big-time personal records for a 6K — about 30 to 40 seconds faster than they ran at conference," Rathke said. "In a sport where it's tough to have five people run a great race on the same day, we did an excellent job."

At the heart of both teams' progress was a philosophical shift. Rathke preached intentionality in everything from hydration and nutrition to mental preparation for practice. Waiting until warmups to 'flip the switch' wasn't good enough. Being ready to start the moment they woke up became the new standard.
The mantra was simple: be good every single day.

"It's better to be good every single day than to be great occasionally," Rathke said. "It's about stacking good day after good day, week upon week, and month upon month until eventually, they're great athletes. You can't expedite the process when it comes to running."

That message was reinforced by an athlete-led culture in which juniors and seniors, like AJ PENA, modeled habits for freshmen and held teammates accountable. Core work became a daily staple. Mileage climbed where appropriate. Strength and stability followed.

The long view is clear. Rathke isn't interested in incremental conference gains alone. The goal is to reframe expectations — from chasing podiums to contending at regionals and qualifying for nationals. It's ambitious, but Rathke believes it's realistic.

"We're showing them how to view this program in a different light, where it's not just about being a top-three team in the LSC," Rathke said. "It's about how we become a top five or six team at regionals and qualify for nationals. It starts with changing our mindset and training to focus on the little details so we can have big aspirations."

Looking ahead, reinforcements are coming. The men will welcome back HOGAN HEIKKINEN and Miguel Prieto. Freshmen Javi Ramirez and Theodoros Anastasiou showed promise, MELECIO ORTIZ finished strong at conference, and Will Sulentich and PARKER STEVENS bring talent. Consistency remains the next step.

For the women, despite losing more than half of the roster to graduation this spring, the season of continuous growth that ended with four of the top five runners setting personal bests at regionals creates momentum for returners like JULIA GAINER, VICTORIA HOYT, Adriana Rodriguez, and SOFIA HERNANDEZ, alongside a potentially impactful recruiting class.

Both teams will remain young next season, with familiar runners stepping into new roles buttressed by the lessons learned this fall.
"We had a lot of new point scorers this season, and it's an adjustment learning to be the one we count on," Rathke said. "It's not just about being one of the top times. It's knowing you can't afford to have an off day, or cleaning up what an off day looks like so it's 15 seconds instead of an entire minute. They're starting to figure it out. It's only a matter of time."

For St. Edward's cross country, that may be the most telling result of all.