State Meet! 11.7.16

Liberty Bell XC - STATE XC MEET!
Location: Sun Willows Golf Course, Pasco, WA          Date: 11.7.15
Distance: 3.1mi      Conditions: Upper 40’s to mid-50’s. Golf course runnin’. FAST!

Comments: Alas, please don’t confuse my horribly slow progress with this final XC update with any lack of enthusiasm for how we raced :) It was a pleasure — pure and simple - to have two complete teams and a full bus/dinner table in Pasco and we look forward to making this a tradition over many years to come!

GIRLS - 3.1mi. 5th place. 109pts.

I’m taking a less individualized approach to race thoughts this time — but to the girls as a whole, AWESOME JOB! Not one of you had even raced a HS XC 5k before the season started… and you walked away from this most excellent season 5th in the State! And THAT, is actually pretty incredible. Nerves were appropriately evident, but totally normal. You walked the course. You asked good questions. You warmed up. You raced, and you performed like you had done it 50 times before. Simply awesome! And even better, it was fun and sweatshirts were purchased! We will be back for sure, and in future years the team can craft with care some goals and destinations that are now soundly based on this year’s experience. With 5 freshman, 1 sophomore and a senior on this year’s team, you all have laid an excellent foundation and the future looks bright for Liberty Bell Lady Lions XC. Congratulations again and thank you for an excellent season. GRRR!

PS As a quick aside to just how fast these ladies are as well, the LBHS record books for performances at State were substantially modified by this crew: Athena now owns the 2nd fastest time at State, Ella, the 4th fastest, Icel the 5th, and Ava the 10th. OK. good stuff :)

NOTE: Great competition in Dist 5/6 this year, with these six guys making the podium at State!

BOYS - 3.1mi. 6th place. 166pts.

And for the boys, another fine year and the impressive continuation of Liberty Bell’s status in the upper echelon’s of 1B/2B State XC. That podium spot just alluded you, but the pieces were there and we made it close — especially given how Cade was feeling less than 24 hours before the race! A 6th place finish to follow 4th and 5th over the last three years is no small thing — and we’ll look forward to returning five experienced State competitors to Pasco’s rolling fairways in 2016! As two quick specific notes here, congratulations to Ben and Geza on the final races of their LBHS XC careers. Ben’s 16:22 broke is his own LBHS record for a performance at State, and Geza ran a personal XC best in his own first appearance at the meet. It's been a pleasure coaching you both!

District Meet - 10.31.15

Liberty Bell XC

Location: Walla Walla Pt. Park, Wenatchee, WA          Date: 10.31.15
Distance: 3mi      Conditions: Mid 50’s. Wet ground - occasional sun/rain. Light wind.

Comments: Congrats to both teams on earning trips to State and thank you again to Chase and all of the volunteer parents/fans that helped to host the meet. This is not a fast 3mi course and to a person you will find yourselves running quicker times for a full 5k next week in Pasco. 

GIRLS - 3mi. 25pts. District Champs and the first LBHS Girls team to State since 1998! 

Athena, congratulations on your third consecutive win! A little more company next weekend, but each of the past three weeks has been good practice for pushing through the final mile with some girls to race at State. Remember your earlier races with Shania Graham from Republic as you will see her again this weekend. A top 10 finish is possible and top 8 go on the podium :) Ella, really good work in bridging that early gap and you too will be in contact with many more racers next weekend. With a little faster start and your nordic skier grit and mid-race strength, a top 15-20, mid-low 20min finish is totally in your reach. Icel, good work again moving up confidently through the race. That 7 min opening mile is solid, but if it goes out a little faster than that at State you will also be fine (see last weekend at home!). Be patient to a degree (about the middle of the pack I think) in the opening mile and you will move strong in the final two. And Ava, it needs to be said again: having our 4th runner in front of Tonasket’s 3rd and 4th was a HUGE part of our success this past weekend. Keep that in-the-moment racing focus on those in reach, pass them by, and move on to the next. You and Icel can both be thinking about a top 30 finish this weekend. Sage, you were closing on Tonasket’s 6th but their early pace created too much of a gap to overcome. A little faster to start this weekend, and you will get carried along to your best 5k of the year! Passing runners in the final mile at State is huge, so keep yourself close enough to kick some people down. Mia, congrats on another race beneath your feet and great to cross that finish line in your final race of the year. You are easily a 7-7:15 per mile runner on this course and we’ll look forward to seeing you rock it in 2016! Johanna, love how you stuck to Sage early, and the adrenaline and energy this coming weekend should carry you along even further. The 25 minute barrier is within your grasp. And Larkin, State bound and lovin’ it! Keep at it and be good with that 8:45-ish opening mile. Things will be exciting and quick to start this weekend and there are runners from Reardan, Tri-Cities Prep and Morton White Pass that you will have in your sights right from the start. 

BOYS - 3mi. 64pts. District Champs!

A faster field that what we saw in 2014 for sure — and you guys came to play. Nice work all around, with a little pre-State adjusting to do in the opening mile for Carter and Peter. Ben, race no. 2 after the week off and you are primed and ready to take whatever comes your way at State. Smooth and crisp in that final surge to pull away for the win. Well-timed and nicely done in keeping the foot on the gas as others started to fall away late in the race. Ideally, you aren’t pushing the pace this weekend, but you are definitely ready to follow and to make your moves when it counts. Eli. Super. Really. Just what you wanted to do and it worked. More aggressive to start, and your persistent strength kept your right in the mix for a surge at the end to pass Manson’s No. 1 when it mattered the most. Top 16 and the State Podium. Believe it!! Cade right in the ball park for Eli’s opening mile and finishing time from last year. With a similar start, he ran 17:28 at State. Comparisons like this are tricky, but remember that a 5:40 opening mile at State also sits around 50th place and gives you LOTS more motivating passing to do through the middle-end miles. Many get excited and go our too hard. Throttle down just a bit in your head and you’ll be set-up well to go after folks. Emerson: Same for you, but lock on and stay connected. That will be easier to do this weekend, so hone that mental toughness one more time. Tractor beam on Cade and bury people in the final mile with some hills. No way you aren’t stronger than most kids around you all of your hours in the last 12 months. Carter: 5:55-6:05 is going to be your opening mile range this weekend. You can handle it and and I know that you can keep it solid throughout. We need you big time for our best possible team scenario this weekend. You’re experienced, you’re much stronger this year, and you’ll have loads of company in your part of the pack out there. After mile one, be the hunter. Pick a runner. Get him. Pick another. Get him. One at a time. Strong, loose, and focused. No doubt that you’ll unleash a monster kick from the top of the final hill to the finish, but put some fear in those around you from the 2-2.5 mile as well! Geza, flying out there on Saturday. And congrats on earning this spot at State - both with your running and in staying on top of the grades! Really good work in pushing that pace after 2 miles and in waking Carter and Peter up for the finish. You, like Carter, are much stronger this year, and if you can keep that push going from spot no. 6 then we are definitely a better team. And Peter, shake off that 7:11 final mile and get ready to have some fun at State. Rest and recover in the next few days. You ran great at Leagues and you can replicate that sub 20 again for sure this weekend. 

 

BOYS JV - 3mi. 15pts and a clean sweep for LBHS in the team scoring! 

We placed four in the top six spots and it is clear in this race too why Liberty Bell High School is consistently qualifying for State and has one of the best programs in the Region. Lazo, Tim, Simon and Cameron, you were faster than the seventh runner for all but 4 schools (Bickleton, White Swan, Tonasket, and Brewster) in the varsity race. Faster than the sixth man for three schools, the fifth man for two, the fourth for two others, and even the 3rd man for Oroville and Lake Roosevelt. And Michael, Sam and Zach, faster than the 7th man for three schools! It’s that kind of depth, that potential for replacing our eventually graduating seniors with experienced and scoring runners that makes this work! We cannot, unfortunately, take everyone State, but keep running like you are and you will get your chance. Of note as well, we were the only team out there with seven Junior Varsity runners. A complete scoring team and more runners than our nearest competition by at least two. Depth you guys! And that is great. Excited to have you run with us through the week and congrats to almost all of you on a successful first season of high school cross-country!