Jesuit's nationally ranked boys cross country team posted a convincing victory in its first invitational of the season Saturday.
Competing against a field that included 6A contenders Lincoln and Wells and Washington power Mercer Island, the Crusaders cruised to an easy win in The Mook Invite at Alderbrook Golf Course in Tillamook. Jesuit scored 55 points to outpace Lincoln (99), Wells (152) and Mercer Island (173).
“It was a test effort for us,” Jesuit coach Tom Rothenberger said. “It was a lot of good, and some areas we can get better at.”
In the DyeStat national rankings, Jesuit is third behind No. 1 Niwot (Colo.) and No. 2 Jesuit of Sacramento (Calif.). Mercer Island is No. 26 and Lincoln is No. 28.
Jesuit showed its strength by placing seven runners among the top 33 in the field of 164 on the 5,000-meter grass course. Crusaders senior Kellen Williams won in 14 minutes, 28.1 seconds, holding off Gonzaga Prep (Wash.) freshman Miro Parr-Coffin (14:29.6).
Williams improved on his personal best of 15:03.4, set last year at the same meet, when he finished ninth. It is the fastest time in the state this season.
Williams is coming off a track season in which he broke a 30-year-old school record in the mile (4:07.61) and finished as 6A runner-up in the 3,000 and 1,500.
“And he's fitter now. So we're not real surprised, but it's a good confirmation,” Rothenberger said. “Kellen's got a lot of good experience. He's got good foot speed. But you run that race four times, that top 10 probably comes out four different ways.”
Jesuit senior Jackson Welsh took ninth in 14:44.6. He was the second Oregon finisher, placing just ahead of Lincoln junior Malcolm Dimoff (10th-14:46.4) and Wells sophomore George Lora (11th-14:50.5).
Crusaders senior Matthew Wroblewski (14:54.7) and Brayden Fletcher (14:56.2) finished 16th and 17th, respectively. Jesuit sophomore Jack Lavier was 24th (15:05.1).
The Crusaders, coming off their third 6A title in four seasons, have excellent depth.
“We know we've got eight guys in that mix that are all capable of helping us accomplish our goals,” Rothenberger said.
Williams, who placed fourth in the 6A meet last year, is the team's No. 1 runner. But Welsh also has the ability to set the pace, and the others are close behind.
“Our goal is to be under 30 seconds between one to five,” Rothenberger said. “There could be races where that's 10 seconds.”
Saturday's race was the second meet of the season for Jesuit. The Crusaders' only other competition was a Metro League meet Sept. 10 against Sunset and Mountainside.
“That's by design,” Rothenberger said. “One, because of a young girls group, and two, a boys team that might well run into the postseason, we hope. They're more experienced. They don't need to run as much.”
Rothenberger said it has a chance to be his best team at Jesuit, where he has coached teams to eight boys state championships and 16 girls titles since 1982. He believes this year's team has more depth than in 2022, when the Crusaders were runners-up at Nike Cross Nationals.
“We think we can have an impact” at Nike Cross Nationals, he said. “We're in that conversation. A lot of it is health. We've got to figure out our best strategy to maximize our talent. That's what these meets are for.”'
Lincoln breaks 6A record
In the girls race at The Mook Invite, Lincoln junior Ellery Lincoln set a 6A record and nearly took down the overall state record by clocking 16:28.5 on the fast course.
Lincoln's time is No. 2 in state history to Emily Wisniewski of 5A Crescent Valley, who ran 16:27.2 in 2023. Lincoln broke the 6A record that was set last year by Lakeridge's Chloe Huyler (16:32.1).
Despite her record performance, Lincoln settled for second place to Mercer Island senior Sophia Rodriguez, who ran 16:10.0. North Salem senior Nelida Dalgas was third in 16:53.0, the No. 2 time in the state this season behind Lincoln.
Sehome (Wash.) took the girls title with 31 points, beating Jesuit (80), Sherwood (105) and Mercer Island (131).
Northwest Classic
Sheldon senior Malachi Schoenherr, the reigning 6A champion, picked up his third victory in as many races this season in the Northwest Classic on Saturday.
Schoenherr won the 6A/5A division in the event on the state-meet course at Lane Community College, finishing in 15:00.70. Summit junior Bjorn Blankenship was second in 15:16.50. Summit (39) outscored Franklin (70) to win the team race.
Oregon Episcopal senior Ronan Gantzos took the 4A/3A/2A/1A division by clocking 15:49.33 to beat Marist Catholic junior Corbin Sage (16:11.28). Knappa finished first with 52 points, well ahead of Cottage Grove (86).
Dallas senior Kelsey Rodli (18:34.20) narrowly defeated Summit senior Sophia Capozzi (18:35.48) for first place in the 6A/5A girls race. Summit was the top team with 46 points; Corvallis edged Ashland 74-75 for second place.
Senior Sophie Schoolmeester helped Banks finish first in 4A/3A/2A/1A by placing first in 19:12.56, outdistancing Cottage Grove senior Ella Cardwell (19:30.63). With 47 points, Banks pulled away from runner-up Oregon Episcopal (88).
Prefontaine Memorial Run
Coquille sophomore Ella Henthorn notched her third win over the season in the 44th Prefontaine Memorial Run at Marshfield High School on Saturday.
Henthorn's time of 18:02.1 took 30 seconds off her personal best. North Bend senior Ellie Massey was second in 19:02.8.
Marshfield senior Jackson Stovall was the top Oregon finisher in the boys race. He timed 15:17.7 to take second place behind George Wyllie (15:09.7) of Tauranga Boys College of New Zealand.
Grants Pass and Tauranga Boys College won the girls and boys divisions, respectively.
jerryu@osaa.org
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