In perfect conditions, with no wind and the temperature in the mid-50's, the District 4 Cross Country Championships took place at Rainier HS Saturday. The course is almost all grass with a few little hills.
The Top 20 girls and the Top 4 teams moved on to State. The race featured all of the runners from districts 1, 2, 3, and 4.
Traci Hoffman of Valley finished 11th in 21:53, and Jessica Cook finish 15th in 22:22. Dominique Kudasik came on strong to place 23rd in 23:21. Claire Borg wound up 33rd with a time 24:24. Kaitlin Daniel finished 72nd in 28:39, and Iris Heckman ended up 73rd.
South Bend's Savannah Burbank Burbank finished 35th in 24:43.
The race was won by Kiersten Kimminau of Northwest Christian in 19:34, followed by teammate Anna Brooks. The Navigators took the first place with 28 points. Ocosta finished second with 64 Points and White Pass was third with 107 points.
"In the end, all of the girls had great races," said Willapa Harbor Tri-District Head Cross Country Coach Brad Donovan. "Burbank was closer to the qualifier goal than year, and Iris closed off her season in good form."
In the boys' race, the Top 25 finishers and the Top 5 teams moved on to state. Northwest Christian dominated the field, while placing 6 runners in the Top 8 and scoring 17 points. Luke Shilter of Northwest Christian took the lead early and never looked back, finishing the course in a lightning 16:15.
For the local runners, Ben Meade of Raymond missed going to state by less than a minute. Valley freshman Ryon Ashley placed 51st in 20:16. Jose Bucio of South Bend placed 60th in 20:57. Aaron deMontigny of Raymond was 75th in 21:41. Blake Moore of Valley took 93rd in 24:29, and Valley's Tomi Tanaka finished 97th in 26:16.
"They did really well," Donovan said. "These kids have battled hard workouts, endless miles of training, and it came down to this one moment. It is awesome to watch."
The girls 1B/2B State race is Friday, 10 am at the Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco. The boys' 1B/2B race is Saturday at 11:30 am.