Cross-country boys win at Seaside Challenge

Charlie Kanzig

Will Thorsett, center, who won the Moderate Course at the Seaside Three Course Challenge is shown here among the leaders in the first half mile of the 5,000-meter course.

A win by Will Thorsett and very strong team running by the rest of the Outlaws resulted in victory for Sisters at the Seaside Three Course Challenge, held Saturday, September 21, at Camp Rilea.

The Three Course Challenge is unique in that teams split up their runners to cover each of the three races, which are categorized as Easy, Moderate, and Difficult. The sum of finish points from each of the three races constitutes each team’s score.

The Easy Course is said to be 4,500 meters, while the other two are both listed as 5,000 meters and include plenty of hills, soft sand, and a mud pit.

Sisters competed in Division 4 in the meet, which included upwards of 2,000 runners from dozens of teams from throughout the Northwest, and came away with an easy win with 125 total points.

Considering that each race included over 300 finishers, it is clear to see that all six of the Outlaws’ scorers placed quite high.

First among the Outlaws came Thorsett, who erased a 20-meter deficit in the final stretches of the race on the moderate course to clip Gavin Grass of Dallas High School, clocking a time of 18:03.

Ever humble, Thorsett acknowledged after the race it felt “really good” to capture a win.

Head Coach Josh Nordell communicated pride for the junior. “Will does the work, he runs smart, and he earned that win,” he said.

Vicente Rebolledo also scored for the Outlaws, placing twentieth (19:45) among a field of 319 finishers.

“Vicente is really coming into his own as a junior,” said Nordell. “He has matured and grown stronger than ever.”

Starting things off for the Outlaws on the day in the Easy Course, Ethan Hosang and Josh Liddell ran together throughout the race and finished twelfth and 13th respectively, both timed in 15:51. Though a non-scorer, Sam May came in 31 seconds later in 16:22, for nineteenth place, which accomplished a big goal for the team, according to Nordell.

“We asked those boys to do everything they could to stick together and push forward, and that’s what they did,’ he said. “Ethan is so steady, and Josh is running the best of his four-year career, not to mention Sam May sticking with those guys for the first time.”

John Peckham had his work cut out for him in the boys’ Difficult Course, not only because it includes the most competitive entrants, but because the course is truly demanding and difficult to navigate. However, Peckham got clear of the throng of the 300 other runners and ran with the leaders throughout the race. He ultimately finished third in a time of 19:02, one second out of second place and 18 seconds behind the winner, Jeret Gillingham of Sandy, who finished in 18:44.

Sophomore Max Palanuk placed 76th as the second score in the Difficult Course for Sisters in a time of 22:21.

“For Max to place in the top quarter of that race shows how tough he is,” said Nordell. “He did what he needed to do for us even though I am sure he was feeling some pain out there on that hard course.”

The Outlaws’ next contest is much more traditional, but even more competitive, as the squad travels to the Nike Portland XC meet on Saturday, September 28, at Blue Lake Park.

Nordell considers it a way to test the team’s mid-season conditioning.

“We have a long way to go for the season, but this meet will give us more information about how our training is progressing,” he said.