Meadowdale senior races to victory

LANGLEY — Meadowdale's Jon Hanson wasn't about to make the same mistake twice.

The senior won the Northwest District 3A cross-country championship Saturday at South Whidbey High School by running a tad more conservatively than the previous week.

In finishing sixth at the WesCo South championships at Lakewood High, Hanson led a pack of Jackson runners early before fading and finishing behind five Timberwolves. This time around, Hanson had a clear path to victory — finishing 15 seconds ahead of Ferndale's Lee George.

"That wasn't the smartest race," admitted Hanson about the WesCo meet. "But that's me, I always tend to run like that."

Jackson, ranked No. 1 in the Coaches Association 4A state rankings and third nationally, won easily with 21 points with four runners in the top five. Lake Stevens (94 points) and Cascade (113) also qualified for next week's state meet at Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco.

The 4A boys race, won by Jackson sophomore Blake Nelson in 16:18 in the last race of the day, and the girls 3A race were contested in an absolute downpour.

Amy-Eloise Neale of Glacier Peak in Snohomish won the 3A girls event in 18:49, 28 seconds ahead of second-place finisher and fellow Grizzlies freshman Katie Bianchini.

Still, Neale wasn't pleased with her time — as she wanted a course record, even in impossible conditions.

"That's just the competitor [in me]. It's frustrating, it really is," said Neale, who was instantly in tears when she came across the line and saw her time.

The Grizzlies, ranked 22nd in the country, swept the top four spots to finish with 21 points. That was 71 points better than the other 3A qualifier, second-place Mount Vernon.

Seventh-ranked Stanwood, led by 4A winner Minna Fields (18:58), won the 4A girls competition with 54 points. Natasha Verma (19:21) was third for the Spartans. Arlington and Oak Harbor (which nipped Lake Stevens by a point) also advanced to state.

Notes

• In 2A girls, Granite Falls freshman Rhiannon Alexander won in a personal-best 19:12.32. Top-ranked Cedarcrest won with 59 points.

• Lakewood senior Taylor Guske was the top local finisher in the 2A boys race, with a fourth-place time of 16:39, to help lead the Cougars to a state-qualifying finish of fourth place.

• Everett (49 points) won the 3A boys title and Shorecrest (60 points) was second. Third-place Glacier Peak, ranked during the season, was missing three of its top runners and failed to qualify.