Moses Lake boys narrowly miss Big Cross team title
PASCO - Three seconds. That's all that separated Moses Lake's boys cross country team from a very special accomplishment on Saturday.
Moses Lake's Jeff Marsh ran a solid race, finishing sixth overall in 17 minutes, 47 seconds to once again pace the Chiefs' varsity pack. But Kiona-Benton's Jose Marcial and Cameron Robertson edged Marsh by two seconds for fourth place, costing the Chiefs a vital team point as they finished second to the Pasco Bulldogs in the Big Cross Invitational.
Pasco scored 40 points to Moses Lake's 41, with both teams placing four runners in the top 10 of the 3.1-mile race. Pasco also got important points as Jesse Durant beat Moses Lake's Nick McAlavy by six seconds for seventh, and Rainier Luhrs held off Ari Santiago by five seconds for ninth.
McAlavy, who head coach Jen Carpenter said has been steadily moving up the Chiefs' order this season, was eighth in 17:58, while Santiago settled for 10th in 18:06. Other Moses Lake point scorers included Skyler Hoffer (17th in 18:53), Erik Chambers (23rd in 19:25) and Steffen Klepsch (24th in 19:28).
Royal's Rigoberto Jimenez continued his superb season by winning the race in 16:20, well over a minute ahead of teammate Ethan Tonnemaker (second in 17:33). The pair helped the Knights place fourth in the team standings with 97 points.
Other Royal point scorers were Roy Angel (20th in 19:01), Rodrigo Montoya (31st in 19:39), Jake Buchheim (77th in 21:23), Jason Orozco (95th in 22:37), Roberto Cruz (117th in 24:03) and Larry Martin (122th in 24:19).
Ephrata got a team-best 14th-place performance from sophomore Eddie Pineda (18:48) to finish third in the team standings with 84 points. Daniel Simon was 16th in 18:53, Steven Monda 19th in 18:57, Ian Westrope 24th in 19:18, Micah Nelson 25th in 19:23, Kort Laughlin 35th in 19:48, and Jesse Hector 40th in 20:06.
Othello was sixth in the boys' team standings, scoring 197 points. The Huskies were paced by junior Tyson Alvarez (42nd in 20:08). Other Othello results included Eduardo Montes (47th in 20:17), Jake Smith (50th in 20:22), Heriberto Delacruz (58th in 20:48), Jacob Hoots (59th in 20:56), Michael Cooper (60th in 20:56) and Daniel Lopez (74th in 21:16).
Warden didn't field a complete team, but senior Marty Gardinier was the Cougars' top finisher, 36th in 19:53.
Girls Results
Ephrata continued its strong season by placing three runners in the top five, a performance that led the Lady Tigers to first place with 44 points.
Pasco sophomore Janette Rodriguez won the race in 20:15, but Ephrata's Brandi Eloff (20:27), Danielle Friend (20:29) and Kendal Hintz (21:55) took the next three positions. Ephrata's Ann Slininger was 17th in 24:37, with Claire Hanburg (35th in 27:07) and Kellie Bracht (42nd in 28:19) rounding out the Tigers' scoring.
Moses Lake used good times from Kayla Chamberlain and Kristin Budiselich to place third overall. The Chiefs scored 67 points, three back of Columbia Basin League rival Pasco.
Chamberlain finished fifth in 22:11 with Budiselich sixth in 22:44. Amy Cromer (19th in 24:39), Danielle Holle (27th in 26:12) and Alex Marek (36th in 27:23) were Moses Lake's other competitors.
Othello was seventh in the team standings with 155 points, led by the 26th-place time of Paula Smith (25:58). Other results for the Huskies included Denise Vargas (47th in 29:15), Lilian Silva (50th in 29:46), Maria Hernandez (51st in 30:49) and Karina Silva (36th in 31:02).
Warden and Royal competed at the Big Cross Invitational, but didn't field complete teams. Royal's top placer was junior Cara Wieldraayer (10th in 23:41), and Warden junior Kaitlyn Yamane was 18th in 24:38.