Just a few days after battling for the top spot at Port Angeles’ annual Salt Creek Invitational, the Port Angeles junior and the Sequim sophomore were back at it.
Fresh off her Salt Creek win, Roughrider Lauren Larson led her visiting Roughriders to a win on Sequim’s home course on Sept. 25, with Sequim’s Riley Pyeatt in second.
Port Angeles came away with a sweep of both boys and girls varsity races, with junior Adam Borde leading a powerful contingent of Rider boys over North Kitsap and the host Wolves.
In the varsity opener, Larson took command early and held on for a win in 19:50, with Pyeatt second (20:46) and Roughrider senior Kynzie DeLeon third (22:03) and NK junior Madison Zosa fourth (22:39).
Sequim, bolstered by strong finishes from junor Jessica German, (fifth, 24:33), freshmen Anastasia Updike (eighth, 24:59) and Macy Cogburn (14th, 26:15) and senior Emily Silva (18th, 27:03), took second place with 46 team points, edging out North Kitsap (51).
Pyeatt missed the league opener one week prior at Robin Hill County Park, but returned to place third at Salt Creek on Sept. 21.
“Today I felt better,” the Sequim sophomore said. “The hills are hard, but they’re hard for everyone.”
Pyeatt said her team, one that features several newcomers, gets along well.
“(We’re) pretty much all underclassmen,” she said.
Larson was simply dominating on the Robin Hill course, Sequim assistant coach B.J. Schade said.
“She obviously puts in the mileage,” he said. “I’m not sure she’s beatable in the state.”
Schade said he liked what he saw from the SHS girls’ team.
“They’re a young team (but) they all ran well,” he said.
On the boys’ side, Port Angeles (19 team points) put five of their runners in the top eight for the win, with North Kitsap second (36) and Sequim third (79).
Schade said Sequim coaches knew the Wolves were in for tough competition, looking at how well the Rider and Viking programs were shaping up this year.
“We’ve got a lot of kids with not a lot of miles on their legs,” he said.
Sophomore Koda Robinson was Sequim’s top finisher, edging teammate Eli Gish, a junior, for 13th place with a 19:51 finish. Kaleb Needoba was 16th and Jaxon Cogburn was 17th.
Schade said he was impressed with Robinson’s kick.
“He made up a lot of ground on Eli and Kaleb (during the race),” he said.
In the junior varsity boys race, North Kitsap prevailed (25 points) with Port Angeles (38) second and Sequim (68) third. Carson Holt was the Wolves’ top JV runner, placing ninth in 21:38.
See more photos from the event here.
Last season, Port Angeles’ and North Kitsap’s girls went 1-2 in the league final while North Kitsap’s boys won league and Port Angeles took third.
Looking ahead
The Wolves take on host North Mason and Kingston in Belfair on Oct. 2, and compete at Bremerton on Oct. 9 against the Knights and Klahowya Eagles.
Sequim’s Koda Robinson, right, races to a 13th place finish — tops on the team — in the Wolves’ home meet Sept. 25 against Port Angeles and North Kitsap. Sequim Gazette photo by Michael Dashiell
