State cross country primer: Top storylines to watch, list of local qualifiers

Saturday at Sun Willows Golf Course, Pasco

Schedule: Wheelchair division at 9:30 a.m.; 2B/1B girls at 10 a.m.; 1A girls at 10:30 a.m.; 2A girls at 11 a.m.; 2B/1B boys at 11:30 a.m.; 1A boys at noon; 3A girls at 12:30 p.m.; 4A girls at 1 p.m.; 2A boys at 1:30 p.m.; 3A boys at 2 p.m.; 4A boys at 2:30 p.m.

Tickets: Daily passes are $10 for adults, $8 for students and senior citizens.

2016 team champions: 4A boys — Bellarmine Prep. 4A girls — Issaquah. 3A boys — North Central. 3A girls — Holy Names Academy. 2A boys — Sehome. 2A girls — Selah. 1A boys — Deer Park. 1A girls — Northwest. 2B/1B boys — Northwest Christian of Lacey. 2B/1B girls — Liberty Bell.

2016 individual champions: 4A boys — Yacine Guermali, Camas. 4A girls — Taylor Roe, Lake Stevens. 3A boys — James Mwaura, Lincoln. 3A girls — Jordan Oakes, Holy Names Academy. 2A boys — Silas Griffith, Ridgefield. 2A girls — Elyria Kabasenche, Pullman. 1A boys — Tibebu Proctor, Northwest. 1A girls — Erin Mullins, Cascade of Leavenworth. 2B/1B boys — Luke Schilter, Northwest Christian of Lacey. 2B/1B girls — Novie McCabe, Liberty Bell.

STORYLINES TO WATCH

1. NAVIGATORS BACK FOR MORE

The Northwest Christian boys completed the three-peat last season, winning their third consecutive 2B/1B team title. The Navigators are favored to win again this year, with sophomores Noah Phillips (ranked third in 2B/1B) and Garrett McSheffrey (ranked fourth) leading the way. The girls’ team also has a pair of highly ranked runners in seniors Ellie Summers (second in 2B/1B) and Megan McSheffrey (third). If the Navigators can upend defending champion Liberty Bell, they’ll win their first team title since 2013.

2. EVERGREEN TRIO

Keep an eye on the 2A Evergreen Conference trio in the 2A boys race. Tumwater’s Joseph Morrissey (ranked seventh in 2A), Black Hills’ Pearse Popchock (10th) and Rochester’s Kelin Pasko (13th) are all in position to finish in the top 20. League champion Morrissey (15:56.7) is the only runner of the three to post a time faster than 16 minutes this season, but Popchock (16:03.8) and Pasko (16:13.3) are close behind. Less than 17 seconds separate the trio.

3. EIGHT IS ENOUGH

Eight local teams across five classifications and five leagues qualified for the state championships this season — the Olympia boys, Yelm boys, Capital girls, Tumwater boys and girls, Northwest Christian boys and girls and Pope John Paul II boys. Each of those teams will be represented by seven runners on the course, and will bring along two alternates. That means 72 athletes will travel to Pasco as team qualifiers, while another 23 locals qualified individually.

LOCAL TEAM QUALIFIERS

4A boys — Olympia (Tilahun Castro, jr.; Sam Fleckenstein, jr.; Max Barnes, soph.; Sayer McDonald, sr.; Zack Sundt, sr.; Ben Van Haitsma, sr.; Dylan Miller, sr.; Jackson Hall, sr.; Joshua Handy, jr.).

3A boys — Yelm (Bryce Cerkowniak, fr.; Logan Miller, soph.; Gavin Stewart, sr.; Matthew Fitch, soph.; Kelan Herness, fr.; Aaron Aflleje, soph.; Luke Martin, soph.; Jacob Barnert, soph.; Alejandro Escobedo, jr.).

3A girls — Capital (Naomi Reyes, sr.; Shasta Hecht, soph.; Emily Jackson, jr.; Grace Playstead, soph.; Sada Mahaffey, soph.; Alina Chandra, jr.; Maria Smoot, sr.; Kallie Kidder, jr.; Lexi Solis, jr.).

2A boys — Tumwater (Joseph Morrissey, sr.; Josh Newman, soph.; Cody Klingelhoffer, fr.; Ryan Knight, sr.; Coe Johnson, jr.; Derek Nnanabu, sr.; Chad Stancil, sr.; Carson Greenwell, jr.; Skye Witley, jr.).

2A girls — Tumwater (Lillian Gow, soph.; Preslie Bryant, fr.; Hannah Reynolds, jr.; Lydia Jack, fr.; Bella Wallerstedt, sr.; Madison Fields, sr.; Emma Stetler, sr.; Drew Sabisch, sr.; Camdyn Hamilton, fr.).

2B/1B boys — Northwest Christian (Noah Phillips, soph.; Garrett McSheffrey, soph.; Hamilton Summers, jr.; Cameron Neilsen, soph.; Tony Dominguez, jr.; Carson Buster, jr.; Will Sinclair, sr.; Vaughn Cook, jr.; Jude Phillips, fr.). Pope John Paul II (Jack Farrell, sr.; Caden Deutscher, jr.; Dmitry Sutton, sr.; Kobe Deutscher, fr.; Jaden Morton, fr.; Joe Oczkewicz, fr.; Jay Sullivan, sr.; Jacob Braun, jr.; Sean Foley, fr.).

2B/1B girls — Northwest Christian (Ellie Summers, sr.; Megan McSheffrey, sr.; Ava Shackell, jr.; Nina Fraser, soph.; Tosin Faleke, soph.; Jacalyn Tague, soph.; Mackenzie Teigen, sr.; Bella Fang, jr.; Kitty Jiang, soph.).

LOCAL INDIVIDUAL QUALIFIERS

3A boys — Tanner Stipic, Capital, sr.; William Johnson, Shelton, jr.; Samir Amin, North Thurston, fr.; Sahid Amin, North Thurston, jr.; Ethan Bursch, Shelton, soph.; Dan Samson, Capital, sr.; John Gerchak, Shelton, jr.; Brock Knowles, Shelton, soph.

3A girls — Katelynn Strate, Yelm, jr.; Aiden Gregg, Shelton, fr.; Natalie Cornwall, Timberline, jr.

2A boys — Pearse Popchock, Black Hills, jr.; Kelin Pasko, Rochester, sr.; Simon Lazar, Black Hills, sr.; Truman Affeldt, Black Hills, soph.; Vance Voetberg, Centralia, sr.; Aidan Doane, River Ridge, jr.

2A girls — Emma Moon, W.F. West, sr.; Makayla Erickson, Centralia, jr.; Alexis Crowl, River Ridge, sr.

2B/1B boys — Brighton Klein, Rainier, sr.

2B/1B girls — Elaina Hansen, Rainier, jr.; Sophie Beadle, Rainier, soph.

This story was originally published November 6, 2017 at 4:23 PM with the headline "State cross country primer: Top storylines to watch, list of local qualifiers."