Outlaws runners cruising through September

The Outlaws cross country teams are gaining momentum as they finish the first month of the competitive season. After dominating the four-team home meet at Cold Springs on Wednesday, both the boys and girls team placed third in Division Four at the Seaside 3 Course Challenge.

In Wednesday's meet at Cold Springs, the Outlaws boys packed tightly, taking second through sixth places to win with just 20 points, ahead of McKenzie (53), Redmond (63) and Regis (90).

Michael Sherman of McKenzie won the individual crown in 17:14 over the rugged 5000 meter course. Benton Urquhart (17:44), Luke Glick (17:50), Parker Bennett (18:05), Jared Henderson (18:17), and Mike Calavan (18:35) swept the next five places.

The girls team actually came through with an even lower score than the boys, a perfect 15, after a group of Redmond runners went off course and did not finish the full 5,000 meters. McKenzie and Regis were both incomplete as well.

The Sisters girls earned third through ninth places to overwhelm the rest of the field. Scorers for the Outlaws included Emi Conrads (22:51), Kirsten Clarke (23:01), Claire Kanzig (23:08), Ryanne Conrads (23:46) and Tia Berg (24:08).

Official results from Saturday's 3 Course Challenge are still being tabulated due to the complexity of the race: five divisions, three courses and over 2,400 runners. Sisters' boys and girls teams both earned third place trophies in Division Four. The highest finisher for the girls came from freshman Kirsten Clarke who placed 14th in the "moderate" race among some 368 runners.

On the boys' side, Parker Bennett's 29th-place finish among 469 competitors in the difficult race constituted the best finish for the Outlaws.

The teams finish out September with the annual Silver Falls Invitational, hosted by Stayton High School, Thursday, September 27.