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Opening the Season with Inspiration from Little Tom
by Alexandra O'Kane

lil tom
The first cross-country meet always comes with a mixture of nerves, excitement, and curiosity. Tuesday September 11 was the season opener for the boy’s and girl’s cross country teams, who ran against Wilton, Trumbull, and Bassick at the home course.

Both the boy’s and the girl’s teams usually dress up for school on the day of a meet, and they continued this tradition on Tuesday. Each runner wore a green tee shirt with the saying “Run for Lil’ Tom”. Little Tom is Caroline Koenig’s nickname from cross-country last year, when she trained with the boys at the end of the season. In order to show their unified support for Caroline, all the athletes sported these shirts for the day. Everyone wanted Caroline to know that they are always thinking about her.

The girl’s team has dedicated their season to Caroline and their cheer at the beginning of the race was “For Caroline”. The goal was to think of Caroline inflowers for lil tom each moment of the race when it felt hard and painful. Little Tom was there for the team as well, cheering for them as they raced around the track. The Trumbull team even brought Caroline blue and white roses and wore ribbons in their hair for her. Caroline has become an inspiration to so many in the FCIAC, most especially the teammates who know and love her. Her motivation and dedication to the sport and the team is evident and heartwarming, even when she can’t be running alongside the girls.