Things are coming together for Sweet Home’s cross-country runners.
The Huskies posted another slew of personal best times at the George Fox XC Classic meet Saturday at Willamette Mission State Park in Brooks.
“A lot of them have had huge PR’s,” said first-year Coach Kambria Schumacher.
The biggest performance of the day was Zoe James, who sliced nearly 1:30 off her previous best time for 5000 meters to finish in 22:18.03, good for 33rd out of 101 runner in her race and the fastest time for that distance by any Sweet Home girl this year. James was the Huskies’ only female runner Saturday.
“She had a really strong race,” Schumacher said. “In a couple of other races this year she hadn’t been feeling well.”
Zach Zanona and Ricky Yunke ran well for the boys varsity, finishing behind leader Tanner Sayers, who was second out of 149 runners in their race, in 16:22.68, 23 seconds behind East Linn Christian’s Jedaiah Wasson.
Significantly, Sisters’ Jordan Pollard was fourth in a separate race, in 16:21.28 – one second ahead of Sayers.
Yunke, a senior, set a season’s best of 18:49.89 for 57th place as the boys placed sixth out of 19 schools, in the race. Zanona was 65th in 18:59.36, his first time under 19 minutes and 16 seconds faster than his previous best at the distance, set the week before at the Harrier Classic in Albany.
“Zach ran a smart race,” Schumacher said. “He paced himself. Ricky had a pretty good run.
“A lot of those kids definitely have the potential to run in the 17s.”
Other varsity finishers were: Tristan Saultz, 71st in 19:08,89; Noah Dinsfriend, 82nd in 19:20.11); Cameron Taber, 102nd in 20:03.72; and Noah Taraski, 113th in 20:28.02.
“Tristan Saultz had another PR,” Schumacher said. “He ran really well.
The boys JV team was sixth in a field of 12, led by Tristan Calkins, who finished 25th out of 149 in 20:33.24, a personal best. Behind him was Gavin Walberg, was 35th in 20:41.39 and Connor Ford, 38th in 20:51.41 – a PR for him.
Schumacher said the Huskies’ next race, the Country Fair Classic, allows 10 varsity runners so she plans to move those three up.
The next three finishers for Sweet Home also ran PR’s, Jake Hindmarsh clocking 21:35.20, Corban Wright 22:02:74, Jaren Adams 23:25.87; and Trace Marler finishing in 24:29:48.
Corban University freshman Sydney Nichol, a Sweet Home resident who went to high school at East Linn Christian, was seventh in the college women’s race, running a college PR of 18:45.2 as Corban finished first out of nine schools.
Sweet Home will compete in its final pre-district meet Wednesday, Oct. 18, at the Country Fair Classic, which typically is held at the Country Fair grounds in Elmira. However, this year’s event has been moved to Richardson Park on Fern Ridge Reservoir. The junior varsity boys will run at 3:45 p.m., with varsity races following.
The district race will be Oct. 26 at Lane Community College.
“We’re starting to taper,” Schumacher said.