Red Devils run to 2nd place finish

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - West Lafayette's girls cross country team enjoyed their best finish in program history on Saturday at the state finals in Terre Haute. The Lady Red Devils ran their way to a second place finish and challenged the number one ranked team in the nation in Carmel, who ended up in first place.

"We came and we gave our best and we got second and I am just shocked by it and so excited for our team and these girls," said West Lafayette senior cross country runner Cailey Daluga.

"It was our best finish in school history," said West Lafayette senior cross country runner Bobbie Burgess. "After the awards we poured water on coach and we dumped the ice and everything on him so that was fun."

"It was really amazing and to actually participate in our best finish ever was the greatest feeling in the world," said West Lafayette junior cross country runner Grace Denton.

The team's incredible finish at state hasn't quite sunk in with the girls just yet though.

"I don't think it will really set in until we have our banquet at the end of the year and realize that my senior year of cross country is over," said West Lafayette senior cross country runner Grace Lachmund.

"Definitely has not sunken in yet," said Daluga. "The fact that we finished second to all these other teams, top ranked teams and these 5A schools that have a quadrillion more people in them than our school is special. Hopefully, soon it will set in. I just still am in awe a little bit of it."

West Lafayette now graduates three seniors in Bobbie Burgess, Cailey Daluga, and Grace Lachmund. But the seniors hope they have set a standard for success that the underclassmen will continue to follow.

"We got third my sophomore year and fifth my junior year and we were always hoping to get better and better and I hope that we set an example for these next girls," said Daluga.

"We still have really good girls and hopefully we will get more and more good girls coming in to the program," said West Lafayette sophomore cross country runner Delaney Barber.

Now until competition resumes next season, you will find these girls doing what they do best, running, somewhere around town.