Very kind note. Thank you, domerduck!

Truth be told, the Aussie freshman also had an excellent first month before a stress fracture and surgery prematurely ended her season. Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Oy! Oy! Oy!

Getting passed on Pre’s Trail by Dutch legend Hassan — at half-speed, no less — on the Sunday morning was definitely a summer highlight for my daughter. (Or was that Saturday morning? Either way, I will pass along your regards!)

As for Purple, #1 runner Rachel McCardell has exhausted her eligibility after a remarkable career. But all the other scorers have at least another year. And 2-3 additional formidable competitors are due back from injury. Plus, who knows what the (awesome!) coaches will bring in from the recruiting trail or the portal. This past summer, they brought in a D3 transfer who finished second last fall individually in XC and first this past spring in both the 5k and 10k from — get this! — Wellesley (decidedly not a prodigious producer of national champions in any athletic endeavor). She’s actually an Oregonian (south central down near the CA border). She’s incredibly, incredibly impressive!!

My daughter will have her work cut out for her to become impactful. But she’s committed to the cause. And we couldn’t ask for anything more from her teammates and coaches as competitors and people. All very impressive!

As for the boxer, there was an impressive retinue of MMA / UFC scouts at the Baraka finals. We’ll see how many Irish are up for that!