The Saint Louis cross country came to a close and was rounded up with the 2022 banquet Nov. 21. Banquets have been held at Saint Louis for many, many years to commemorate the season and athletes accomplishments. 

This year eight seniors were able to follow a long standing tradition of signing the mega phone. All seniors who run cross country at Saint Louis are able to sign this megaphone. This has been going on since 1995 and  was started by former Coach Steve Kelly.

Senior Laney Pestrue said, “I really liked our smaller team this season because it was easier to bond with everybody.”

Senior Jenna Abell said, “I was really excited to be able to finally sign the megaphone after being in cross for four years. It felt like a reward. Overall, cross season went really well despite having a really small team. I am really proud of how we did.”

Cross Country Coach Jay Puffpaff said, “Every senior that has come through the program since that time has signed the megaphone and leaves their mark on the program. Early on in the tradition the megaphone was something that was “willed” down to an underclassman in the program to keep safe and continue the legacy. Once they became a senior and graduated they would “will” it down to another underclassman in the program. As the years passed the names on the megaphone from the earlier years became more and more fragile; the tradition was forced to evolve to having the megaphone kept by the coach so as to keep all the early names safe from disappearing. With every name on the megaphone comes numerous stories, memories, and legacies left on the program.”

This is a longstanding tradition that will continue for generations to come for the SLHS cross country team.