Liberty Bell XC: Wenatchee Invite (MS) 9/18/2021

Course length: 1.55 miles.

General Notes -- The course features lots of rolling inclines with only one significant hill right at the finish. With the exception of some brief pavement crossings, the course runs on grass from start to finish. All middle school athletes completed one lap of the 2500m course. Athletes had lots of chances to be cheered on while running, particularly in the last mile of the race. The weather during the middle school races was cool and overcast, but the rain held off until later in the day. This meet was a bit larger, particularly for the 7th and 8th grade races. In general, Liberty Bell did a great job of not going out too fast and was able to use the saved energy to move up through the field during the second half of the race.

The 6th grade girls team won with 23 points. 2nd place went to Pioneer (Wenatchee) with 38 points. There were 17 athletes and 2 scoring teams in the race.

The 6th grade boys team won with 23 points. 2nd place went to Pioneer with 34 points. There were 16 athletes and 2 scoring teams in the race.

The 7th grade girls team was the only complete team and therefore won. There were 23 athletes in the race.

The 7th grade boys team was 2nd with 52 points. Pioneer won with 26 points. There were 38 athletes and 4 scoring teams in the race.

The 8th grade girls did not have a complete team. There were 26 athletes in the race.

The 8th grade boys did not have a complete team. There were 34 athletes in the race.

Highlighted Athletes

Elaine – One mile: 8:26. Finish: 13:17, 8th place. Average: 8:34.
Wowzers! You had a fantastic race. Even though this course was longer than last week, you ran a lot faster. It was inspiring to see you work hard through this entire race and have steadier pacing. Plus you got to run with teammates pretty much the whole time which makes racing not only a little easier but also more fun!

Freya P – One mile: 8:53. Finish: 13:33, 11th place. Average: 8:44.
Incredible racing! Your overall pace was faster than your first mile – meaning that you picked it up quite a lot in that last half mile. Way to stay focused and work with your teammates through the tough middle part of the race and then drive to the finish so strongly. You are already improving!

Ingrid – One mile: 7:33. Finish: 11:42, 3rd place. Average: 7:32.
Nice job! Your pacing was so solid – you went out strong and found a good groove to run in. You were focused and calm and showed a lot of strength. I know it might have been a tough race, but you managed to find a more consistent pace this week and I am certain you will keep improving!

Yasmin – One mile: 8:20. Finish: 13:10, 12th place. Average: 8:29.
Hooray! What an excellent race. You went out really well and got to race with your teammates through most of it. Then you managed to stay strong and find the energy to finish with a lot of grit! I could see the focus and fierceness in your face and it was really exciting. Great job!

Greta – One mile: 10:38. Finish: 15:40, 22nd place. Average: 10:06.
What a race! You did it! I know that it was not easy and you were nervous beforehand but you turned those jitters into a lot of determination. I am so proud of you. Racing can be mentally and physically challenging and you did an excellent job of digging deep to find your endurance in both ways!

Landon – One mile: 6:52. Finish: 10:44, 1st place. Average: 6:55.
Fantastic job! You went out a little slower this week, which seemed to pay off. Despite running a large portion of the race by yourself, you were able to maintain your speed and had a super consistent pace the entire way. You always look smooth while you're running, and Saturday was no exception. One thing we've talked about is running with a teammate, which should be easier in future races. Congrats!

Luke – One mile: 7:30. Finish: 11:41, 7th place. Average: 7:32.
If you hadn't heard, you managed to drop your average pace by over 30 seconds, despite running longer! That's amazing! You went out around the same speed, but the extra training paid off, because you were able to hold on to your pace and stayed steady. That's the mark of a good racer. I'm so excited to see what you can do this year!

Dylan – One mile: 8:48. Finish: 13:41, 12th place. Average: 8:49.
Congratulations on finishing your first cross country race! I hope you had as much fun running as I did watching. What's so impressive is that, even though this was your first race, your mile was right on your overall pace. That shows major consistency. Then, you were able to really battle it out there at the finish. Now, you get to work on beating your own personal best!

Liam – One mile: 8:01. Finish: 12:08, 20th place. Average: 7:49.
You went out quite a bit faster this week, but then you managed to get even faster after the one mile. Your average pace was over 10 second faster per mile, which means you really had some serious speed in the late stages of the race! I hope you've seen what you're capable of, because I think getting out even faster might be the move. It sets you up for a phenomenal race!

Bodie – One mile: 5:59. Finish: 9:12, 4th place. Average: 5:56.
I know you were wanting to get a slightly higher placing, but you managed to beat your time goal by 15 second! That's really impressive! You found yourself in a close race the entire way, and your competitiveness paid off down the stretch as you managed to really pick up the pace late in the race. If you keep up the great work, your times will keep on dropping!