Cross country coaches, teams and fans around the state have been getting more opportunities to learn of Cumberland High School’s program in the last few years.

The Dukes have stepped into the spotlight, and leading the way have been seniors Matthew Bapties and Jared Halvorsen.

Cumberland Head Coach Kenneth Jasey described them as the two rock-solid cornerstones to the cross country program.

“We depended on them,” he said, “and they undoubtedly made the program what it has become — respected.”

At the Virginia High School League Group 1A State Championships on Friday in The Plains, Bapties placed fourth out of 102 runners with a time of 16 minutes, 50 seconds, earning an all-state honor.

“It was a hard race because I was against pretty much the top people in the state, but I think I did pretty good,” Bapties said. “My goal was definitely at least top-5 in the state, and my goal was definitely to run below a 16:55, which I did.”

Halvorsen placed 23rd with a time of 17:55, one he was not too proud of, but it was the second-fastest time on the team.

The Dukes placed eighth out of 12 teams competing.

The fact that Cumberland qualified for states as a team is part of the legacy that Bapties and Halvorsen leave behind because it had never happened before their time.

“Last year was the very first time, and we did it again this year,” Halvorsen said.

Halvorsen was the first to earn an all-state honor, placing seventh at states in 2014. He also won the James River District Championship that year and in 2015, earning the accompanying title of district Runner of the Year twice.

Both Halvorsen and Bapties were all-state in 2015 and all-region in 2016.

This year, Bapties was both district and Conference 42 champion, earning the Runner of the Year title in both cases.

Bapties said what has helped Halvorsen and himself succeed has been their mental approach and their consistency.

“You can see all of the top people in the state kind of have that similar mindset,” Bapties said. “If we get tired or if your legs start to get tired or you start hurting or something like that, we don’t really stop. I think it’s all just a mindset. And then going to practice every day, too — I don’t think me and Jared have ever missed a practice. We’re always there, always engaged.”

Halvorsen also credited one of their predecessors, Matthew Horton, who was part of the class of 2014.

“We trained with him when we were young freshmen, and it was just something that kind of stuck with us,” Halvorsen said. “We kind of felt like we had a duty and a job to carry our team to states and just make it a better program overall.”

Jasey said they leave a hall of fame legacy, and they will make one more run at the Footlocker South Regional in Charlotte, N.C. on Nov. 26.