West Milford cross country captains lead Highlanders on and off course
West Milford. Senior Lola Novak and juniors Chloe Mirkovic and Sydney West are providing leadership for West Milford’s girls cross country team while helping the Highlanders improve to 4-1 in their conference.
| 28 Sep 2026 | 03:26
From left, Lola Novak, senior; Chloe Mirkovic, junior; Sydney West, junior. (
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The West Milford High School girls’ cross country program is quite fortunate this season.
The Highlanders have three captains - Lola Novak (senior), Chloe Mirkovic (junior) and Sydney West (junior) - with the willingness to not only improve themselves, but to help their teammates do so in a variety of ways as well.
“These ladies lead on and off the cross country course,’’ West Milford head coach Andrea Jones said. “They are always looking out for their teammates and making sure there is a true team bond to help with our success.’’
All three captains have already made positive strides on the cross country courses this year.
Jones said Novak placed 12th overall at the TCNJ Invitational and has continued to post some of the best times of her running career. She added that Mirkovic and West are among the team’s top seven runners and have continued to improve their times.
Jones has proudly seen the areas in which all three leaders have gotten better in this challenging athletic endeavor.
“Their leadership has shown how serious they are about getting our team to accomplish success this season,’’ Jones said.
The Highlanders are 4-1 in the conference.
The relationship between the captains and their teammates is both positive and meaningful.
“All three captains are motivating when it comes to supporting their teammates,’’ Jones said. “They have a great attitude about the workouts which motivates their teammates to work just as hard.’’
Several runners have helped the Highlanders reach their goals so far this season.
“Kayla Clegg (freshman) has become our number one runner in our top seven,’’ Jones said. “She has placed top 15 overall or higher in every race so far this season.
“We continue to work hard and improve every day.’’
NOTES: On Thursday, Oct. 22, West Milford is scheduled to participate in the Passaic County Championships at Garret Mountain in Woodland Park...the individual and team statistics mentioned above are from meets through Sept. 22.