Competing in cross country in the Metro League has always been cutthroat, but, this season, it’s getting even more brutal.

Running amid some of the toughest competition in the state, Bainbridge High varsity cross country Head Coach Anne Howard Lindquist explained, this year’s state meet qualifications will allow even fewer runners to make the trip.

“It’s not like swimming when we can get some kind of state qualifier [early],” she said. “It’s dramatic because it’s all [dependent] on that district championship day and what happens.”

The district meet will be held on Saturday, Oct. 31 — Halloween. An eerie omen, perhaps, but that’s not even the scariest part, BHS team officials agreed.

“It’s going to be harder this year,” said Assistant Coach Paul Benton. “Because they’re only taking four teams instead of five, and that means only 20 individuals, so it’s going to be very competitive.”

The Spartans have some time — but not much — to gear up for the grind. They made their way through a muddy season debut invitational in Tillamook, Oregon, the first time they’d competed in the “Ultimook Invitational,” and came away with some top placers — including a second-place trophy in the womens division.

In their first regular meet of the year, hosted by Seattle Prep, the squad saw super stats in both the mens and womens division.

The BHS runners took the top spot in the womens division with 19 points total, beating out runners from Ingraham, Nathan Hale, Seattle Prep and Franklin, and, in the mens bracket, the Spartans took second place.

The team’s first and only home meet is slated for 4:20 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 7 at Battle Point Park.

It’s a strong start in a notoriously tough league, Lindquist said. The Spartans will face runners from Ballard, Bishop Blanchet, Chief Sealth, Cleveland, Eastside Catholic, Franklin, Garfield, Holy Names Academy, Ingraham, Lakeside, Nathan Hale, O’Dea, Rainier Beach, Roosevelt, Seattle Prep and West Seattle.

“When you look at where the strong spots are for cross country, across the nation, Washington just lights up the page,” she said. “When you look at the national meet that’s held in the end of November down in Portland, the winners — individually and teams — have come out of Washington before.

“It’s nice to know that we’re racing against the best,” she added.

This year’s Spartan squad boasts about 117 student runners — including eight student captains — and seven coaches, four of whom are volunteers. The team’s training regiment includes calisthenics, yoga and cross training, including weekly trips for many runners to nearby Island Fitness for spin classes.

The team’s greatest strength at this point in the season is sheer eagerness, several student leaders said.

“It’s a really good group of kids this year,” said BHS senior and co-team captain Britt Lindquist. “We have a really strong ‘team’ aspect this year. We’ve got a really strong group of freshman — both boys and girls — and, also, not only do we have a strong varsity team, but we have a strong JV team all the way down.

“It’s not just about the varsity team,” she added. “We’re focused on all parts of team [and] and all aspects of the team, like friendship.”

Fellow co-team captain, BHS senior Nick Shiach, agreed.

“Our JV squad is faster this year than it’s ever been,” he said. “Our varsity is fast. We’re a very deep team. We don’t have as much front-end talent, but [we’re] really deep.”

Success in the sport of cross country requires a lot more than speed, both captains agreed.

“It’s a lot more than just being fast or just being athletic,” Lindquist said. “It takes a lot of commitment and hard work and also you have to be a really good team player because cross country is a team sport, despite what it may look like.”

Consistency and mental strength are what he encourages freshman runners to work on, Shiach said.

“Being comfortable, being uncomfortable is a big thing we talk about,” he explained. “Running is really mentally challenging, and a lot of what separates great runners from OK runners is being able to push through that second mile of the race and run even faster.”

There are scores of Spartans set to stand out this season, Coach Lindquist said, and BHS sports fans should have no shortage of runners to watch.

“We’ve got this solid group of girls who have been working together since freshman [year],” she said. Audrey Weaver, Julia Denlinger, Naomi von Ruden, Jackie McVay and Emma Goidel, Lindquist said, “are great

friends and teammates and all of them could come across the line as number one at any one time.”

On the mens side, Ryan Cox — “He’s getting close to his personal record already,” Lindquist said — Ben Scott, Devon Reynolds, Jared Cordell, Conner Evans, Shiach, Carlo Ruggerio and Carter Hall all stand out as early season favorites.

Also, she said, Cole Brundige and Will Gleason “are good friends and competitors with each other,” and the team also boasts Kyle Hammer and Wyatt Longley, both “really speedy track guys.”