The Glen Allen Boys
This year's squad of Joshua Holtzman, Ali Ibrahim, Ethan Billmayer, Ben Jackson, Devin Johnson, Ben Hagerich, and Wade Carter ran to prove a point all year and came very close to celebrating on the Steward's Stand three weeks ago. After finishing second in their region they entered the state meet on a mission.
Despite being seeded fourth at best on paper, the Jaguars ran their hearts out and finished second to Deep Run. The final score was 81 to 83 with defending Champions Albemarle in third with 86. This marked their second time as state runners-up.
Glen Allen high school is a school just outside of Richmond on the northwestern side. They opened their doors in 2010 and by 2012 had a full school. It wasn't until 2013 that they made it to states as a team but when they did, magic started to happen.
In 2015 they finished fourth, followed that up with a runner-up finish in 2016 and finished 3rd last year but were just 16 points away from winning. This year they were runners-up again. Though it was not the finish they had hoped for, it was definitely another step in the right direction.
To an outsider it may have looked like this was their only shot, considering they graduate their entire top four but once you dig deeper you see Glen Allen is all about culture. It is about year after year fostering growth and improvements.
Take 2016 for example, they graduated three from their varsity squad and came back stronger the next year. In 2017 they did the same, graduated another three and still got stronger. Their 2017 number 8 runner even became the team's highest finisher at States (Josh Holtzman) this year.
Though they do graduate a lot, they also return a lot too. Next year five of their top ten return.
Finishing second at States is a great honor but also heartbreaking. The big takeaway though is that Glen Allen has continued to trend upwards and also is performing at their best at the state meet. With a great culture of winning and improving already there Coach Jenn Ennis will soon have that trophy she has been waiting for.