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The Navigators scored an eye-popping 30 points, while second-place Reardan totaled 94.
“Awesome,’’ said coach Larry Weber. “They ran great, they worked hard all year and they did very well.”
Senior Elizabeth Weber led the charge, finishing third in 19:36. Not far behind was junior Hailey Bredeson in 19:46. Morgan Willson of Colfax won the girls’ title in 18:36.
“I’m very pleased with their performances,” Larry Weber said. “They exceeded expectations.”
Northwest Christian’s six titles match the total that North Central’s boys have won, but are still three short of the Mead boys’ string of nine from 1988-96.
In the boys competition, the Navigators had a fine day, finishing second with senior Lucas Graham (16:17) capturing the individual crown.
In Class 4A, the Bellarmine Prep girls’ emphasis on team earned them a trophy.
The Lions finished runner-up to Tahoma, despite not having a single runner finish among the top 15 and just one in the top 20.
‘‘With this team, this year is the picture of team effort,’’ said coach Matt Ellis. ‘‘We’re young, inexperienced. No one was ready to emerge as a front runner.’’
Sophomore Hannah Derby posted the team’s top time, finishing the 5-kilometer race in 18:54.3 and placing 18th.
Her teammates were not far behind, with junior Daryl Phill (23rd) and sophomores Rachel Hale (26th) and Jordan Thurston (27th) helping the Lions score one fewer point than Redmond, which had two runners in the top 10.
Low score wins the competition in cross country.
When Bellarmine Prep’s No. 5 runner, sophomore Hayley Hustead, finished two spots ahead of Redmond’s fifth runner, that was the one-point difference between second and third.
‘‘We spotted them some points (at the top),’’ Ellis said, ‘‘but we made up ground with our team running.’’
‘‘We were pretty packed together as a team,’’ added Phill. ‘‘We help each other stay packed together, and when someone wants to take off, we usually get someone to go with us.’’
It was the Lions’ first state hardware since winning the title in 2004.
‘‘Our goal obviously was first (place),’’ Phill said, ‘‘but we’re all proud of each other with second.’’
Mount Rainier sophomore Jordan McPhee won the individual title. Her time of 17:24.7 would have been a record last season but was the third best time on Saturday.
‘‘I knew I could do well at state because I did so well in track,’’ said McPhee, who started running to stay in shape for basketball. ‘‘But I really wanted to win state.’’
The Peninsula girls also got to climb on the trophy podium, finishing third in the 3A race. It was the Seahawks’ first trophy in at least 20 years, thanks to a big-time performance from their top three runners – sophomore McKenzi Bravo (14th), senior Rebecca Paradis (17th) and junior Katie Lynch (22nd).
Lynch’s finish was key, helping Peninsula pull away from a Kamiakin squad that had two runners among the top 11, but lost 46 more spots waiting for their No. 3 runner to finish.
