Cedarcrest Cross Country has strong showing at Apple Ridge Invite

On Saturday, Sept. 17, the Cedarcrest cross country squad competed in the Apple Ridge Invitational in Cowiche. The Cedarcrest boys finished with two wins; the girls placed second in the first race and had strong placements in all the day's events.

September 20, 2016 4:21 pm
2016 CHS girls cross country team placing first at the Apple Ridge Run Sept. 17. Courtesy photo
2016 CHS girls cross country team placing first at the Apple Ridge Run Sept. 17. Courtesy photo

On Saturday, Sept. 17, the Cedarcrest cross country squad competed in the Apple Ridge Invitational in Cowiche. The Cedarcrest boys finished with two wins; the girls placed second in the first race and had strong placements in all the day’s events.

The meet was held at Apple Ridge, in an area surrounding an apple orchard, west of Yakima. There are three, three-mile race courses which vary in difficulty. Coaches place runners in one of the three races while planning for team score purposes — the top two runners in each race contribute to the overall team score. So, coaches split up the top runners so they have a few in each of the three races.

The first race was on a relatively flat course and the two highest CHS placers for both genders were Ben Benson, second, Justin Young, 13th, Lily Krueger, second, and Elsie Dombek, fourth.

In the second race, which incorporated a couple of uphill climbs, Cedarcrest’s Grant Van Valkenburg placed first, Daniel Murphy, eighth, Madi Shinn, second, and Kate Vergillo, seventh.

The third race was the most challenging course. It had one of the uphill climbs from the second race but at the two-mile marker there was a long 600-meter climb that is not for the faint of heart. The top CHS scorers were Ian Fay, second, Emmett Klaiber, fifth, Alicia Krivanek, third, and Megan Reid, sixth.

This year’s version of the meet was a step up from previous years, said Cedarcrest Coach Bruce McDowell, as some new teams in the event increased the level of competition.

Cedarcrest had a lot of candidates for Athletes of the Meet, McDowell said, naming Ben Benson, Daniel Murphy, Alex Perry, Lily Krueger and Elsie Dombek for the honor.

Many runners improved on their personal records at the meet, McDowell said. Returners ran one minute or more faster than they did at same meet last year and this was the first race beyond two miles for the “rookies,” McDowell said, “so it allowed them an opportunity to see what running that third mile was all about.”

The next CXC meet will be the Bellevue Cross Country Invitational Saturday, Sept. 24 at Lake Sammamish State Park.