ARLINGTON — Once again, Paige Gerrard is a district champion.
And this time, she gets to share that distinction with her teammates.
Gerrard cruised to her second consecutive Class 3A District 1 girls cross country title and led Snohomish to a district team championship Saturday afternoon at Lakewood High School.
“When we heard we won, that was the most special moment I think I’ve ever had with my team,” Gerrard said. “I wouldn’t trade that for anything else in the world.”
Gerrard, who placed sixth in last year’s 3A state meet, ran the 5,000-meter district course at Lakewood in a winning season-best time of 18 minutes, 25.3 seconds. The standout junior finished more than 40 seconds ahead of the rest of the 3A girls field.
“It really reflects how hard she works,” Snohomish coach David LeWarne said. “She’s a hard worker. And that’s the neat thing about this sport — if you work hard, good things are gonna happen.”
Led by Gerrard, the Panthers took first place in the 3A district team standings with 87 points. They finished nine points ahead of second-place Shorecrest.
Gerrard was one of five Snohomish runners to finish in the top 35 of the 3A girls race. Freshman Ashley Taylor took 19th place (20:36.9), junior Brooklyn Gildersleeve-Stiles came in 20th (20:39.1), junior Annabelle McConnell finished 24th (21:02.0) and senior Elizabeth Weatherhogge placed 35th (21:34.0). The latter four all ran personal bests.
“Pretty exciting stuff,” LeWarne said. “It was certainly a team effort. … Each of them came ready to perform.”
For both Gerrard and her teammates, their district performances marked a bit of redemption from last week’s Wesco 3A North championships.
Gerrard was disappointed with her second-place 19:30.0 showing last week, which was her slowest 5,000-meter time of the past two seasons. And as a team, the Panthers felt they could do better than last week’s second-place league finish.
“She and others walked away from last week feeling like there was more in the tank to give,” LeWarne said. “And they certainly gave that today.”
Gerrard and her Snohomish teammates are among the many local runners headed to Pasco for next week’s state championships.
After a strong state debut last year as a sophomore, Gerrard is eyeing a spot near the top of the podium. Her district time Saturday ranks as the 10th-fastest in the 3A girls classification this season, according to Athletic.net.
“Everybody’s excited on our team (to watch Paige), because I think that after last year’s experience and having success, you’re just waiting for her to write the next chapter,” LeWarne said. “And I think just being a year stronger, a year wiser, we hope that really helps to solidify her performance.”
SHORECREST STANDOUT WINS 3A BOYS CROWN
Last year, Luke Schmidt came within seconds of the district title.
This time, the Shorecrest senior standout blazed past the rest of the field.
Schmidt ran a winning time of 15:34.5 to claim the 3A District 1 boys crown, finishing 14.3 seconds ahead of second-place Arlington senior Kellen Langford.
“Oh man, it was so satisfying,” Schmidt said of the victory. “It was nice to just have it under my belt and to finally get this medal (around) my neck.”
Schmidt took second place in last year’s district meet, finishing just 2.7 seconds behind then-Arlington senior and eventual 3A state runner-up Brandon Moore.
“I wanted to take it this time,” Schmidt said. “I knew I had it in me to win it. So that’s what I came out here to prove.”
Schmidt’s season-best time of 15:26.6 from a few weeks ago ranks as the fifth-fastest in the 3A boys classification this season, according to Athletic.net. After placing 18th in his state debut last year, he’s eyeing a big performance at next week’s state meet.
“I’m excited,” Schmidt said. “I don’t think state last year was my race. But now I know what the course is like (and) I know what to do. I’m gonna go up there and I want to place. I want to get up on that podium and be a part of the top Washington runners.”
SHOREWOOD BOYS ROLL TO 3A TEAM TITLE
After missing state by an agonizingly narrow margin last year, Shorewood left no doubt this time around.
The Stormrays are headed to state. And they’re going as district champions.
Shorewood rolled to the 3A District 1 boys team title, led by four runners placing in the top eight. The Stormrays took first place with 39 points, finishing a whopping 42 points ahead of second-place Shorecrest.
It comes after Shorewood finished a mere three points shy of the district’s final state berth last season.
“We had a lot of those guys back,” Stormrays coach Joel Reese said. “And so they remembered what that felt like and they motivated themselves like, ‘Hey, we’re not gonna let that happen (again).’ And obviously they went above and beyond what they did last year. So it was a lot of fun.”
Shorewood junior Keiyu Mamiya led the way with a third-place district finish (16:25.9). Freshman Max Billett took fourth (16:27.6), sophomore Otto Erhart placed sixth (16:33.7) and junior Luke Gillingham came in eighth (16:34.3). Senior Ian McArthur finished 18th (17:06.1) to round out the Stormrays’ scoring.
“They put a lot of work in in the offseason,” Reese said. “We really took care of business in the summer and just had a lot of team camaraderie among that top group. … They ran a smart race and did exactly what they needed to do.
“If they do the same thing at state,” he added, “I think we’re gonna surprise a lot of people and have a really good day.”
3 LOCAL 4A TEAMS ADVANCE THROUGH BRUTAL BI-DISTRICT
At the 4A level, Wesco and KingCo combine their state berths through a bi-district meet. That creates a steep challenge for Wesco 4A teams, as KingCo 4A is home to some of the best squads in the state.
According to Athletic.net, KingCo 4A includes the top two boys teams in the state’s 4A classification and four of the top five girls teams.
On Saturday, a trio of Wesco 4A squads made it through the gauntlet. The Lake Stevens girls, Kamiak boys and Lake Stevens boys each earned a top-four bi-district team finish to advance to state.
The Lake Stevens girls took third place with 108 points, led by two runners in the top 10 and three in the top 20. Senior Ella Edens placed fifth (18:43.7), sophomore Hallie Carroll finished 10th (18:57.8) and senior Alexis Buhman came in 20th (19:39.6).
The Kamiak boys took third place with 92 points, led by a pair of top-10 finishers. Junior Will Lesyna placed sixth (16:11.1) and senior Jaedyn Chase finished ninth (16:15.9).
And the Lake Stevens boys took fourth place with 94 points, led by senior Jakob Broadbent’s fifth-place finish (16:09.6).
OTHER TOP LOCAL FINISHERS
Meadowdale junior Payton Conover placed third in the 3A girls race (19:06.7) and Monroe senior Alexis Canovali-McKenzie finished right behind in fourth (19:07.9).
Lakewood senior Gavin Darrah took fifth place in the talent-laden 2A boys race (15:57.9).
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
Gallery
