Lakeridge senior Chloe Huyler punctuated her rise as arguably the state's top girls cross country runner Friday in the Rose City Championship Invitational at Rose City Golf Course in Portland.
For the second time this season, Huyler outdueled Crescent Valley senior Emily Wisniewski, the three-time reigning 5A champion, to win a meet.
The Notre Dame-bound Huyler finished the hilly, 5,000-meter course in a personal-best 16 minutes, 32.1 seconds, the No. 4 time in the nation this season. Wisniewski, committed to North Carolina State, was second in 16:35.9.
“She was excited to have Emily there,” Lakeridge coach Scott Spear said. “Emily kind of brings out the best of her, so she enjoys racing with her. She looked composed the whole time.”
As a cross country rookie last year, Huyler finished behind Wisniewski in all three meets she raced against her. That included the Rose City meet – where Huyler placed second, 33 seconds behind Wisniewski – and the regional and national championships.
But after losing to Wisniewski in the 3,000 meters at the Oregon Relays in track season, Huyler has turned the tables. She defeated Wisniewski by 26 seconds to win The Mook Invite on Sept. 21, then held on to prevail in a more competitive race Friday.
“I raced her three weeks ago, and it wasn't as close, so I knew it was going to be a battle coming in,” Huyler told RunnerSpace. “It was a little hard, obviously, toward the end, but it was a lot of fun to actually race her and have it be close.”
Huyler held a slim lead over Wisniewski heading down the final hill with about 500 meters left, and was able to create more separation in the final 200 meters. The finish illustrated Huyler's footspeed.
“She's got a little bit more quicks than Emily does,” Spear said. “That's more of where her history has been. She's moved up in distance where Emily's been running longer distances longer.”
Huyler showed dramatic improvement from last year's Rose City meet, when she clocked her season best of 17:00.3.
“It was like the fourth race of her life,” Spear said. “Having been on the course before gave her a little bit of confidence.”
North Salem junior Nelida Dalgas (16:46.3), Caldera sophomore Maddie Carney (17:15.2) and Lakeridge senior Hannah Huyler (17:16.7) – Chloe's twin sister – were next.
Hannah Huyler, who recently committed to Vanderbilt, also has made big gains. She took more than two minutes off her time in last year's meet (19:23.5), when she finished 46th.
Chloe Huyler told RunnerSpace that she is proud of how her sister has improved.
“She put in a lot of work this summer,” she said. “I knew she was going to be fast. I honestly think she surprised a lot of people here.”
Boise (Idaho) finished first out of 23 girls teams, recording 125 points to beat Lincoln (140), Crescent Valley (160), Lakeridge (171) and Summit (177).
Summit's Boaz prevails again
Summit senior Hayden Boaz added to his season-long winning streak by taking the boys race at Rose City.
Boaz finished in 14:31.1, the fastest time in the state this season and No. 3 in the nation. Central junior Ty Cirino (14:34.5), Boise senior Jack Sheesley (14:36.8) and Caldera junior Mason Morical (14:40.3) were next. Cirino and Morical posted the No. 2 and No. 3 times in the state for 2024.
Boaz refused to yield with Cirino applying pressure.
“Ty was on his shoulder the whole time,” Summit coach Kari Strang said. “Hayden's a fighter, and I know how strong he is at this point, and how badly he wants it. He's truly a competitor. I knew he had it in him, but it was really fun to watch him realize it.”
Boaz, who placed sixth in the 5A championships last year, added the Rose City title to wins in the Northwest Classic, Nike Portland XC and Oxford Classic.
“Honestly I think he's probably even exceeded any expectations that the coaches had for him,” Strang said. “But we're not surprised. He's just been putting in the work. Super consistent, very patient. He just keeps getting better all the time.”
Boise also won the boys meet with 112 points, comfortably ahead of Wells (139), Summit (146) and Central Catholic (153).
Jesuit shines at Hole in the Wall
Jesuit's girls and boys finished first and second, respectively, in the prestigious Nike Hole in the Wall Invitational on Saturday at Lakewood High School in Marysville, Wash.
Senior Emma Bennett finished 10th out of 147 girls to lead the Crusaders, who scored 115 points to beat Sehome, Wash. (125), and Mercer Island, Wash. (164). Sophomore Anya Augustine was Jesuit's second finisher at 27th.
The boys team scored 135 points to take second place behind Coeur d'Alene (Idaho), which had 115 points. Sehome was third with 138.
The Crusaders were led by juniors Kellen Williams (12th) and Jackson Welsh (23rd).
Champoeg Invitational
Franklin swept both divisions of the Champoeg Invitational on Friday at Champoeg State Park.
The Lightning edged Westview 68-69 to win the 19-team girls meet, with Crater (148) far behind in third place. Franklin dominated the 21-team boys race, scoring 47 points to outpace Forest Grove (98) and Sprague (145).
Canby senior Kenzie Bigej (17:58.5) was the top girls finisher, beating La Salle Prep senior Maya Crimin (18:17.5) and Dallas junior Kelsey Rodli (18:21.9).
Forest Grove senior Sawyer Marquis (14:50.6) cruised to victory in the boys race ahead of Franklin seniors Zafer Courcelle (15:01.5) and Brennan McEwen (15:18.1).
jerryu@osaa.org
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