Inglemoor senior Wilson put it simply: the last 200 meters at his home course were “magical.”
Turk rounded the final corner and turned on the afterburners, making up a five-meter gap to beat Skyline’s Griffin Ganz by less than a foot on Wednesday, Oct. 5 at St. Edward State Park in Kenmore.
It was the first win of his high school career, and his last time competing in Kenmore. His time, 16 minutes, 40 seconds, was two seconds off his career best.
“This is the most important race for me so far this season,” he said. “We’ve had other big races, but this is the most meaningful — just because it’s my third year. I’ve done Inglemoor cross country every year I could, and just to get that last stretch against one of our rival teams… to get that psychological boost going into our regional meet is huge for me, and I hope it drives our team.”
The Skyline boys still managed a 26-30 win over Inglemoor on Wednesday, with Bothell finishing third with 82 points, but now the focus shifts to the conference championships on Oct. 22 at Lake Sammamish State Park.
The Vikings have one more conference race remaining: a tune-up against Eastlake on Oct. 12.
“With our guys’ team, our top five is pretty interchangable,” said Inglemoor coach Kelly Richards. “We were down two guys today with sickness. For us to get to state, it’s going to be Skyline and Issaquah, and it’s very evenly matched with both teams. I’m glad we’re sick now because it means we’re going to be done and over with.”
Inglemoor junior Lian Elias finished fourth in 16:57, followed by Inglemoor senior Ethan Karlisney in 16:58. Junior Brayden Schults finished eighth in 17:04, and freshman Cooper Laird finished 11th in 17:22. The top 15 individuals and the top two teams from the 4A KingCo championships qualify for state.
“I want to get our team to state,” Turk said. “The top five score, and I’m going to do everything to push it as a team. If I can make it as an individual, that’s great, but I hope my team makes it even more.”
Bothell’s top finisher was junior Brandon Simmons, who placed 12th in 17:31. Sophomore Dylan Lennon finished 18th in 18:12.
Inglemoor senior Rebecca Ledsham won yesterday's meet with Skyline and Bothell by 42 seconds. pic.twitter.com/0QWzH3GQ5R
— John William Howard (@JowardHoward) October 6, 2016
While the finish of the boys’ race was close, the girls’ race was completely the opposite. Inglemoor senior Rebecca Ledsham won by 42 seconds in 19:41 — nearly a minute slower than her time from Oct. 1.
Ledsham said she was running at about 90 percent, hoping to rest before next week’s conference finale. Barring a complete meltdown in the conference championships on Oct. 22, Ledsham should skip through to the state meet. Currently, her best time puts her third in the conference rankings, behind Mount Si’s Hannah Waskon and Issaquah’s Kenna Clawson.
Waskon is the target for Ledsham in two weeks, though the Mount Si senior has set a mark 30 seconds faster this season.
“I need to race a lot faster than I have been this season. I’ve been slow starting out,” Ledsham said. “I need to start out with her because I have been letting her go in the beginning of the race and it hasn’t worked out.”
Bothell sophomore Liza Yusem, who finished third in 20:26 on Wednesday, is likely to qualify for state as well, but the Vikings have a pair of runners on the individual bubble in freshman Olivia Wisont and senior Etta Moen.
Wisont finished fourth in 20:35 on Wednesday, and Moen finished 11th in 21:20. Inglemoor sophomore Caitlynn Parpart finished ninth in 21:18.
Skyline won the girls’ meet with 28 points. Inglemoor finished second with 38 points, and Bothell was third with 72 points.
