Liberty Bell XC
Location: Walla Walla Pt. Park - Wenatchee, WA Date: 11.1.14
Distance: 5km Conditions: 52 degrees. Sun. Breezy. Soft wet ground.
Comments: A season-ending race for some, and a dramatic extension of the year for others. The “team” component of XC weighed heavily in our Regional performance, and a special note of thank you to 8th grader Emerson Worrell who came along for the ride as we tried to create as many possible options for making sure that we could have a scoring team. In the end it was officially determined that 8th graders could not “salvage” the team performance in a XC race, but he will be a ninth grader next year — so watch out Region 5/6!
VARSITY / JV GIRLS - 5k
The final race of the year for Koharu and McKenzie and in both cases it is to their credit that they each wanted just a bit more. Mud and soft ground broke Koharu’s early rhythm and almost stole her shoe, but a return to form over the final 800m looked more like the Koharu that we applauded so heartily at home last weekend. We sincerely hope to have her back as a senior leader to guide a young and enthusiastic scoring TEAM! of 5+ girls in 2015. This would be the first LBHS girls team in maybe 10 years and we are hopeful as well that a more experienced McKenzie Woodworth joins those ranks. While McKenzie’s Regional performance was perhaps a bit slower than desired as well, the difference her racing from September to November is like night and day. A few 800s and maybe a mile race or two for the spring track season McKenzie, and you will start seeing XC paces in the 8:30 range for 2015!
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| Carter Dornfeld. Bringin' the noise! |
VARSITY BOYS - 5k. First place team! 71 pts.
It goes without saying that Carter is the MAN of the hour! In walking (with a little jogging) to his slowest time of the year by over 7 minutes, he is also the only reason that this TEAM has a spot on the starting line at State. Thank you Carter, for rising to the occasion and for your willingness to hobble along on a less than perfect foot to make that possible. The first place Regional Championship was a surprise indeed and some serious icing on the cake. We knew right from the start that we would have 63rd place in the race, and Joe, Eli, Willy and Ben all get props for racing to near perfection to minimize our point scoring on the front end. Joe: Your bold move to take the lead was a fine experiment. The “go for the win” attitude is commendable, but it gets hard running on your own with soft ground and a sudden load of expectation. Even better was your recovery in that third mile after getting caught. Yes, you were passed, but after your fastest first mile of the year, determination prevailed and you raced well over the final 800m to hold important places. You still ran 2 seconds faster then last week on a softer course and in a more difficult approach. At State you will no doubt go out as fast or faster — but you’ll never be alone and your best race is yet to come. Eli: Knocking on the door of a sub-5:40 mile yet again, and you were typically tough through both the middle and the end of the race. Stay excited about that 17:35 or better time for Saturday. With a fast start again no matter what, and smart racing through your forte middle mile, seconds melt away at State on pure adrenaline and the nature of a uniformly faster filed. Willy Duguay! Finishing things in style with a bold and important move at mile 2. Remember the gap that you bridged so late in the Regional race when you are chasing folks at State.There seems to be a faster front of the field this year, but some of those folks (whether they actually go out too fast or not) are going to go into mental debt and will experience some late race doubts. In your solo 2 mi move you covered major ground to catch Eli’s group, and a similar move may prove incredibly valuable at State. If you are catching a teammate pick them up and bring them along. When you pass anyone else — nose to the grindstone and make ‘em hurt! And Ben, great, patient racing just like we expected. Hard to shake Oren from your shoulder, I know. Impossible maybe, but you toyed with it and the pacing MUCH better then weekend and it was sweet to see you strong, tall, quick and light in those final 800m of the race. You were visibly holding back and looking very comfortable, so 17:14 on that soggy course is going to translate into 16:50 or better and a new PR for you in Pasco.
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| 400m was all it took for Willy to open up this 20m gap on Lake Roosevelt's Chris Oates. Tide totally turned from their photo finish as the line two weeks back in Oroville! |
FOR ALL again, just a reminder that the first mile at State will go out fast. Ben, probably not a lot faster than some of your other races this year, but for everyone if your hear at all it will be unfamiliar and perhaps 10-20 seconds faster than the norm. DON’T SWEAT IT! We don’t want to be in the back of the pack, but we are going to be confident in our ability to race well in the later half of the race. Each of you can hang and even accelerate at any given point in a race. We’ve seen it. You’ve done it. Times are fast at State but racing smart and racing people is the key. Be the hunters. Eyes up. Focus ahead. Pick out who you are going to pass and find some landmarks for when. These little goals and achievements throughout the race will break it up and accelerate you towards your best possible finish. A job well done for all at Regionals and your best is yet to come.