The race pistol fires, and just like that cross country athletes from around the state of Pennsylvania take off running wildly through Parkview Cross Country Course in Hershey, PA. Their well-worn racing sneakers spray dirt up behind them as they pick up speed. The runners are all competing for the same title — state champion.
Emmaus High School senior Mady McCartney took the title for the girls league with a time of 18 minutes and 17 seconds in the 2025 competition on Nov. 1, 2025. The competition is run through the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletes Association (PIAA), which is a state-wide sports organization.
“I think all of my work paid off in that moment,” McCartney said.
McCartney has been running for most of her life.
“I started competitively running track and cross country when I was in fourth grade,” McCartney said.
She grew up surrounded by athletes and has done sports from a young age.
“Both of my parents were athletes in high school, and my parents are actually runners. To this day, my dad has run many marathons, and honestly…it influenced me to start trying out sports,” McCartney said. “I played soccer, so there was the whole running aspect in that…I got into kids series races and then 5Ks and that’s how I joined a club [cross country] team.”
McCartney joined the Emmaus team once she started high school. She has run with the EHS team since, with this fall being her last season. Since the beginning of this season, the athletes have been training for the invitational and league meets.
“Our first few meets are all invitational so everybody’s kinda getting into it,” McCartney said.
Towards the end of the season, the athletes start training for states. To get to states, an athlete must either be a part of the top two teams in their district or be one of the top ten runners outside of the top two teams. McCartney, being on the Emmaus team, went to districts with the school.
“Once you get to the later meets of the season…that’s where you kind of ramp things up a little bit, and you start focusing on the courses specifically,” McCartney said. “And the specific parts that you want to be stronger in than kids from other teams.”
Districts is how athletes qualify for the state competition. McCartney came first at districts and thus moved on to the state-level race.
“When you get to states, it just really shows you who’s good on hills because the state course is extremely hilly,” McCartney said.
The state course also features grass, gravel, and dirt in addition to hills. The course is designed to be somewhat challenging.
“You definitely have to put in a ton of work and a ton of effort,” McCartney said.
Looking forward, McCartney plans to continue her path running cross country and track in college at the University of Kentucky.
McCartney’s win at the state level qualified her for the national competition, but unfortunately she is unable to attend.
“Doing the work even when you don’t feel like it can be rewarding because I think the way I performed at states was all because of the work and effort I put in prior to that,” McCartney said.
