As the sun began to set against the backs of the Desert Vista girls cross country team Tuesday evening, it evoked a sense of poetic justice. In the teams’ eyes, it was the end of an era for the Thunder, who had come close to reaching their goals as a team, but ultimately came up short.

It has been three years since the Thunder brought home a team state championship, dating back to the fall of 2016. In the year after, 2017, they took third overall in the state tournament. Last season, they dropped another spot, finishing fourth in the state.

But as the team approaches the Desert Solstice Cross Country Festival, the first meet of the season, girls varsity captain Katy Clausen thinks this season will be different.

“We’ve worked for two years you know, and things are finally starting to come together,” she said. “We have had a few ups and downs… but really this year, we have all gotten so close and we are just holding each other accountable, we are really excited.”

The team has been training for nearly 15 weeks with five to six days of training within each week. Tuesday night’s practice was focused on hitting the approximate splits in which each individual on the team aims to run at the Desert Solstice.

It was broken down in precise science for each runner, all calculated on various spreadsheets, and while being timed and communicated from the various seven assistant volunteer coaches. The coaching staff wanted to simulate the first race of the season by acclimating the runners to the heat, to the distance and to each of their respective paces, as if they were tying a bow onto their more than three months of rigorous training.

It was a serious environment at the Desert Vista high school track. All runners were focused and prepared to dive into the mock race full force and with their best effort. The coaches wouldn’t take anything less, always acting in strong support while still holding high expectations. Boys varsity coach Chris Hanson was guiding all runners and saying things like, “Hold your pace in your head. Don’t let anyone dictate your pace but you.”

The scene was empowering. But it wasn’t just the coaching staff that was working to uplift the runners; It was the runners themselves, especially the core of captains for each squad. After concluding their various races, many of them would turn around and cheer on their teammates before even grabbing water. Hanson, who was standing next to the group, wore a shirt printed with a quote on the back, reading: “The warrior for us is one who sacrifices himself for the good of others.” Girls’ assistant coach Michael Bucci, announced proudly at the conclusion of practice, “They are ready. They are ready to do something.”

As more discussion of the upcoming season began, Hanson reflected on the leadership within the program. “We tend to pass leadership different ways…I have a coach and a captain for each team,” he said, specifically speaking to each varsity and non-varsity group for boys’ and girls’.

“With that big team,” he continued, “40 to 45 girls, that can shrink the team, make it feel a little more intimate, a little more unity in that regard.”

Though no one specifically mentioned it, it is likely that the state title is in the back of the heads of the runners. They continually talked about how the pieces of the puzzle are beginning to fall together, alluding to the hope for success this season, while focusing on the idea of unity.

Clausen spoke more to the specific goals for the girls’ this season. “I think it’s just to go out there and see what we can do,” she said. “We have gotten a little bit more attention this year nationally, just because we have gotten some new additions, so I think proving to ourselves that we can hang with everyone and we can really put ourselves out there is definitely the goal... and just to have fun as always.”

The race gun will shoot off, and the Thunder will cross the start line for the first time Friday at 5 p.m. in Tucson for the Desert Solstice Cross Country Festival.