Boys from Wakonda are PNW Small HS XC Champs
SHS runners fill leaderboard at showcase in Wash.
Nov. 21, 2022 — One of the most remarkable all-time performances by a Viking athletic team over an entire season continued last Saturday when five members of the Siuslaw boys cross country team traveled to Marysville, Wash., north of Seattle, and took home the Small High School Club team title.
The runners from Siuslaw High called themselves Wakonda XC Club, an ode to the fictional town in Ken Kesey’s quintessential northwest novel Sometimes a Great Notion.
Siuslaw senior Kyle Hughes won the race in 16:33.5 and teammate Sam Ulrich (16:34.9) was just behind him in second.
Viking senior Jacob Blankenship (17:20.9) finished 13th. Junior Brayden Linton (17:24.7) was next in 15th. Freshman phenom Camden Linton (18:27.0) was the next Siuslaw runner to cross the finish line when he finished 30th.
Those five boys runners combined to top the team standings on the boys side with a low score of 34. Cougar XC Club of Lakewood, Wash., was next with 50, followed by Lion XC Club, of Lynden, Wash., with 93.
As a result of illness, only four Siuslaw girl runners were able to compete, meaning they could not compete for team title, but all ran great races nonetheless.
Freshman Alison Hughes continued her remarkable debut season by finishing 3rd in 20:23.1. In 4th was teammate junior Corduroy Holbrook in 20:27.8.
Junior Jane Lacouture (21:32.3) was 12th and freshman Adylin Holbrook (21:45.0) was 13th. Valley Catholic’s Jaya Simmons, who was third a few weekends ago at the Oregon 3A/2A/1A State XC Championship, won the race in 18:35.0.
A team called Club Megistanis from Palouse, Wash., was at the top of the girls team standings with 15 points, but it appears they may have won because they were the only girls squad to field a full team in the Small High School Club Division.
“Great day of racing,” said Wakonda Coach Chris Johnson after the race. “And just like that, it’s track season.”
This wraps up cross country season for Siuslaw.