The ADM girls and boys varsity cross country teams officially have their racing legs underneath them, as the Tigers competed in their third invite of the season Monday afternoon at the Ballard Cross Country meet.

Tigers head coach David Zwank said the first month of the season was about developing his runners’ “base” level of training. That includes a variety of different exercises, from distance runs to timed miles to sprints.

Zwank said all of it, including the first few invites, are geared toward preparing for the end of the season.

“We sprinkle things in over the course of the whole thing with the idea that we’re preparing for these first meets that are just continued practices,” he said. “We talk to the team about the end of the season, and it’s different for our sport than football and I think even volleyball you have to have a certain level of performance during the year to qualify [for the postseason]. At the end, at least we get to go to that state qualifying meet, everybody, and we’re going to put it on the line.”

Next up, ADM has its home meet at the Hillcrest Country Club Monday afternoon against Saydel, Norwalk, Van Meter, West Central Valley, Carlisle, I-35 Truro and Ballard.