Cross Country

Cross Country

Northwest Christian in Lacey Becomes a Washington Powerhouse in Cross-country

Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley

Northwest Christian High School is tucked between the evergreens in Lacey in an idyllic setting, but do not mistake this pleasant atmosphere for a lack of competitiveness in its cross-country runners. The Navigators arrive at the starting line ready to not only compete but to win.

And win they did Saturday (11-8-08) during Washington State’s 2008 Prep Cross-Country Championships at Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco, taking home championship trophies in both the girls and boys B (small school) races.

The girl Navigators topped Asotin by scoring 60 points to Asotin’s 68. The low score of each team’s top 5 finishers wins in cross-country. Northwest Christian was led by freshman Elizabeth Weber’s 3rd place finish in 20:27.

Weber was followed by junior Ashlee Giesman in 4th place at 21:04, senior Jessica Zimmerman’s in 12th at 22:03, junior Taylor Bodine in 15th at 22:17, freshman Janna Salo in 26th at 23:42, junior Chelsea Dick in 44th and senior Lacey McConnell in 48th. The spread between their first scoring runner and last scoring runner was 3:15.

Northwest Christian’s 3-4-12-15-26 finish beat Asotin’s 5-10-13-19-21 finish.

The Navigators entered the final as the two-time defending state champions so the victory was their 3rd consecutive title. There is no question that the girls rule the roost at Northwest Christian.

For the record, the girl Navigators won the state Track and Field Championship in 2007 and were runners-up this year.

The Navigator boys’ team has been moving up for three straight years, having finished 3rd in the team competition in 2006, as the runner-up in 2007 and winning their first state title this year by beating Reardan, 52 t o 77.

They dominated and almost crushed the competition as sophomore Justin Holden was the individual runner-up at 17:01, senior Micah Cushman was 3rd at 17:01, senior Alex Feero was 6th at 17:27, freshman Lucas Graham was 7th at 17:29, senior Bohlig Nathan was 34th at 18:25, junior Johnny Motte was 47th and senior Michael Schmidt was 48th.

Their 2-3-6-7-34 finish topped Reardan’s 4-9-19-20-25 finish. The Navigator boys spread was 1:25. It was good that Northwest Christian had a lot of front runners and high finishers because Reardan’s spread was 1:07.

Coach Bill Kehoe has made Northwest Christian High School into a state powerhouse in cross-country. While he loses 1 senior—Jessica Zimmerman—among his top 5 girl runners, and 3 seniors—Micah Cushman, Alex Feero and Bohlig Nathan—among his top 5 boy runners, Kehoe still has some good runners left and a tradition of winning to defend both titles next year.

About the Author

“The Golden Era of Prep Distance Running in Washington – Part 1″
“Pat Tyson’s Arrival Starts a Run of 9 Consecutive Titles – Part 2″
“How About a State X-Country Title Where the First 3 Finishers Are Your Runners – Part 3″
“2 Mead Runners Crack 9 Minutes at the State 3200 Meter Championships – Part 4″
Find my Blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
http://www.edbagleyblog.com/Sports.html

What muscles are important to build for cross country?

I know you need leg and calf muscles. I’m mainly wondering about upper body muscles that I can work to be more efficient in cross country.

Running is an all-around sport. Since you’re wondering about upper-body, I’ll honest and tell you that everything in the upper-body will play a sufficient role in running.
Make sure you have a strong core (abs and back). A strong core keeps your body up and balanced and helps you keep your form during fatigue.
Exercises: Crunches with your knees bent and with your legs up at 90 degrees, side crunches, and back “flops” for your lower back.

You arms and shoulders give you that extra pump when your legs are tired. They will help you power through that stride or that last mile or up those hills when you need it most.
Exercises: Push-ups, pull-ups, bicep curls, over-hand claps, and anything with weights.

Your chest keeps your body up and clear to get enough airflow to your lungs.
Exercises: Push-ups (regular or elevated).

If you want to strengthen your body for endurance purposes, make sure you do more reps and less rest and it would also help if you did your workouts after you run. You’ll be more tired, but in the end, you’ll be feeling stronger after you get used to it.
Hope this helps, good luck and God bless!