Once the Hereford girls defended their state championship with a convincing victory in the Class 3A race, the pressure was on the Hereford boys to match them Saturday at Hereford High.
That feat became more challenging about 100 meters after the start of the race, when someone stepped on the heel of Hereford junior Kevin Collins.
He ran for short while with the flat tire, but couldn't go any longer, so he churned the rest of 3-mile Hereford course wearing one shoe.
"I tried to get it back on, but I just couldn't, then I just threw it off because there was nothing I could do," said Collins, who knew stopping would cost him precious time and placement. "It made me more determined because I had to do well, otherwise my team was going to lose, so it put pressure on me."
In the end, Hereford captured the team title by three points over runner-up Linganore, (72 to 75).
Collins (18th, 17:24.5) was the third Hereford runner across the line, but his pass of Towson's Zachary Simmons (20th, 17:27.4) late in the race was key, as was the sprint to the finish by Hereford's Kevin Payne (19th, 17:27.2).
Julian Rivera (8th, 17:02.6) also caught a runner at the end to give the Bulls the necessary points to hold off Linganore, which boasted race winner Braden Bruning (16:20.8).
But Hereford's Jon Luckin (5th, 16:50.5) wasn't far behind the senior champion.
"Jon has really been focused," coach Russ Drylie said. "Things started clicking for him in practice a while ago, and then they really took off after his regional performance (1st)."
Gabe Rivera (22nd, 17;33.1) was the fifth Hereford runner. His positioning was pivotal because Linganore's fifth runner was 40th.
"We knew we could have five with their four and if we did it would give us a good shot to win," Drylie said.
Noah Konkus (62nd, 18:35.5) and Ben Vantran (88th, 19:00.3) also ran for the Bulls, who have now won the Baltimore County, regional and state meet two years in a row.
Before last season, the previous state championship team from Hereford came in 1978.
While not quite a dynasty, the boys could be on the verge of one.
The girls, on the other hand, have either won or finished second in the state championship meet for the past decade.
The most recent title on Saturday was Hereford's second straight after capturing titles in 2004 and 2005.
Hereford sophomores Sara Carter (2nd, 19:58.6) and Erin Causey (5th, 20:23.4) and freshman Meghan Anderson (10th, 21:01.2) were in the top 10 for the Bulls who finished with 48 points, well ahead of second-place River Hill (114).
"I had no strategy," said Carter, second to Urbana freshman Emily Mulherin (19:53.3). "I just trusted my pacing and stayed up with the leaders."
Causey, who won the individual state title last year as a freshman, knew her goal.
"Our goal is to win states." she said.
Coach Jason Bowman knows the pressure is on the Bulls every year.
"The weight of expectations is incredibly heavy for the girls," Bowman said. "They know they are expected to be up there every year so it's quite a burden to carry, but I'm real proud because even in the favorites role, they come up big."
As defending champion, Causey was certainly in a favorite's role, and she responded.
"Erin has had some health issues, but she has soldiered through and never let us down," Bowman said. "A fifth-place performance for us is as golden as a win."
Carter, close friends with Causey, has peaked with every performance.
"At the regional meet, she really made a gutsy move to win it and we knew she would have a shot today," Bowman said. "She was gutsy and went for it and it didn't quite pan out, but as soon as she finished, she was like, 'Next year, I'm going to win it.'"
Senior Emily Vandewater (14th, 21:19.5) and sophomore Alaina McCleary (22nd, 21:39) completed the top-five for the Bulls that also got strong runs from seniors Bailey Wilhelm (23rd, 21:40.7) and Lauren Kennedy (41st, 22:23.0).
"Our seniors, Lauren, Emily and Bailey, have been a part of this dynasty here and they set the tone in practice every day and they set the expectations," Bowman said.
Expectations for the Dulaney High girls in the Class 4A race were not especially high with powerhouses Bethesda-Chevy Chase and Whitman in the race, but that all changed on the course.
And coach Chad Boyle was like a proud papa when he saw the Lions finished fourth overall with 117 points.
They were only 14 points behind champion Bethesda-Chevy Chase (103), and even closer to Whitman (111) and Severna Park (114).
"I think that was the most incredible performance I've seen from a Dulaney girls team and I've coached state champions and state finalists," said Boyle who coached state finalists from 1998 through 2000 and state champions in 2001.
In fact, from 1992 through 2001, Dulaney finished either first or second in the state meet and former coach Bob Dean led them to state titles in 1992 and 1994 through 1997.
"They say in sports there are mystiques and, I really think there is something to the Dulaney cross country program," Boyle said. "People might be skeptical about that kind of thing, but I saw it happen today."
The leader of the Lion pack was sophomore Isabel Griffith (3rd, 19:40.7), who followed Whitman's Caroline Guiot (1st, 19:27.5) and Churchill's Lucy Srour (19:36.3) to the line.
Chaqieta Robinson (17th, 20:55.3), Krissy Link (31st, 21:17.3), Diamond Gaines (35th, 21:28.2), Sydney Glenn (41st, 21:38.9), Lilly Klein (53rd, 21:55.9) and Summer Wassel (111th, 23:36.2) also contributed to the surprising effort.
"They are really a group of championship athletes and they feed off the legacy and when it come time for a state championship meet, they rise to the occasion," Boyle said.
Loch Raven's Emily Ruppel also knows how to rise to the occasion.
Last year, she won the Class 1A state title as a junior.
This year, in the Class 2A race, Ruppel (20:01.2) was nearly 29 seconds faster than last year, but she finished third behind Tiffany Lang (19:47.9), of Oakland Mills and Hannah Oneda (18:28.3).
Oneda ran faster than a Twitter Tweet, smashing the Class 2A state meet record of 18:54.2 set in 1993 by Catonsville's Bridget Olp.
Ruppel tried to stay with her for the first mile, but she pulled away.
"That was my goal," Ruppel said. "I think I took it a little too aggressively."