Boys cross country preview: Coupeville runner will compete alone this season

Published 1:14 pm Tuesday, September 14, 2010

What does an elite high school athlete do when he has no team? Faced with that bizarre situation, Tyler King trained hard and hoped for the best.

This past summer, King prepared for his final high school cross country season. Fueled by his dream of winning a state championship, the exceptional distance runner — who placed fifth at the Class 4A state meet in 2009 — stuck to his grueling workout plan and laid the framework for achieving his goals.

But there was a huge problem: Until late August, King didn’t know which team he would run for this fall.

King’s strange predicament began last school year when the statewide school reclassification — based on student enrollment numbers — dropped Oak Harbor High from 4A to 3A for the two-year cycle that started this fall. King attends Coupeville High, a 1A school located 11 miles south of Oak Harbor on Whidbey Island. But King ran for Oak Harbor’s cross country team the past three years because Coupeville doesn’t offer the sport.

For the same reason, a handful of Coupeville swimmers and wrestlers have competed for Oak Harbor.

Until recently, the system worked well. But following reclassification, Oak Harbor ended its combined sports agreement with Coupeville. The reason: In a combined-school agreement, the smaller school’s enrollment numbers are added to the larger school’s numbers. In this case, Oak Harbor would have remained a 4A school.

However, by ending the agreement and eliminating Coupeville’s enrollment figures, Oak Harbor was able to switch to 3A. The change gives Oak Harbor athletes a better chance to participate in district and state tournament events in many sports, Oak Harbor athletic director Nicki Luper said.

Unfortunately, Oak Harbor’s decision put King’s senior cross country season in question. King couldn’t compete for Oak Harbor. His school, Coupeville, still had no program. He looked into the possibility of running for 2A South Whidbey, but that didn’t happen.

After months of uncertainty, King heard in August a new plan was in the works. He got an official answer Aug. 30, when the Western Conference and Cascade Conference presidents approved a pact between Coupeville and Oak Harbor.

Replacing the previous combined sports agreement, a new cooperative sports agreement allows King to share resources (including coaches and most transportation) and train with Oak Harbor cross country runners. King will primarily run in the same meets as Oak Harbor but won’t score points for the Wildcats and will wear a Coupeville uniform.

Other than King, the new pact will affect one female swimmer from Coupeville this fall, as well as one male swimmer and possibly a few wrestlers from the 1A school this winter, Luper said.

Another important change: To qualify for the postseason, King needs to run in at least one Cascade Conference meet. And instead of staying with Oak Harbor and trying to advance to the 3A state meet, King must pursue a 1A state berth.

“It’s definitely different,” King said. “Honestly, when I first found out that I wasn’t going to be able to run for Oak Harbor I was disappointed.”

“But it is what it is. I can’t really do anything about it. I would have liked to be in the 4A state race, but (at least) I can run,” said King, who has received recruiting interest from the University of Washington, Washington State University, the University of Portland, the University of Colorado and Boise State University, among others.

Coupeville does have a track program and King plans to run his final track season for the Wolves this spring. He will attempt to defend his 1A state titles in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter events.

Last year King finished fifth in the 4A state cross country championships with a time of 15 minutes, 33 seconds on the 3.1-mile course in Pasco. Based on his time, he would have been the second-fastest 4A returner, and only one 3A returner was faster than King in 2009.

But instead of chasing a big-school cross country crown, King will shoot for the 1A title.

“It’s really unfortunate for Tyler for this to happen to him his senior year. That’s the biggest bummer for him,” Oak Harbor cross country coach Eric Peterson said.

“We love him to death. He’s a great kid,” said Luper, Oak Harbor’s athletic director. “But I also need to look out for the Oak Harbor kids. That’s my job.”

Determined to make the best of his odd situation, King doesn’t just want to win the 1A title. He aims to run the fastest time at state, regardless of classification.

“I know it’s going to be tough,” said King, “because there’s a bunch of fast guys out there.”

In 2009, the 1A state champion’s time was 16:10 — 37 seconds slower than King’s time on the same course. But King expects Elma’s Todd Jackson, whose school switched from 2A to 1A because of reclassification, to provide a challenge. In May, Jackson won the 3,200 title and finished fourth in the 1,600 at the 2A state track meet.

“It’s not going to be super easy or anything,” said King, “so I’m actually kind of excited for that.”

Mike Cane: mcane@heraldnet.com. Check out the prep sports blog Double Team at cmg-northwest2.go-vip.net/heraldnet/doubleteam and follow Cane on Twitter at MikeCaneHerald.