For the past few weeks, the runners of the Oak Park Cross Country team have been working tirelessly— not only juggling practices and meets, but also preparing for Oak Park High School’s annual Showdown event, a schoolwide fundraiser for various participating sports teams and groups.
“Showdown is just a bunch of sports teams, and then dance and cheer both combine to choreograph [a routine] for them, and [the different sports teams] compete against each other,” sophomore and JV dancer Alana Selcer said.
No good performance is ever complete without a theme, and the cross country team made sure that theirs is one to remember.
“Our theme is rappers,” senior and OPHS varsity cheerleader Marissa Kalan said. “We thought that would be a fun one because we have both girls and boys in our Showdown group, so it was [something] that everyone could do, and there were really great songs for it.”
However, even with an exciting theme and well-choreographed routine, there are still challenges that come with Showdown. As Showdown practices continued, one of the biggest challenges that the team faced was issues with practice commitment.
“[Showdown practices are] going pretty well, but a lot of people don’t show up,” freshman cross country runner Natasha Clark said.
Even with the unsteadiness of attendance, cross country has been working hard— not only with learning and executing their routine, but also with pushing themselves out of their comfort zones.
“I would say my favorite part of the Showdown practices has been seeing cross country step out of their comfort zone, and try something that they normally haven’t tried. They’re used to just running on a trail or around a track, and [during Showdown practices] they were lifting people up and they’re doing dance moves that they probably haven’t done [before],” Kalan said.
As Showdown night approaches, the team’s hard work is paying off, and the excitement of performing is setting in.
“[I’m really excited to] perform the stunts with my friends,” Clark said.
Come support and watch cross country perform at Showdown on Nov. 15 at 6 p.m. on the OPHS football field.
