MLHS XC sweeps final league meet as girls capture undefeated CBBN championship

WENATCHEE — The Moses Lake Mavericks cross country team had a complete victory Tuesday evening with the boys and girls varsity and JV squads taking first place in their races. 

"We had a good day," said Mavs Head Coach Larry Dagnon. "It was probably one of the top days I can remember for a league meet ever. Last year we were pretty solid in league also, but this one eclipsed last year's meet at Blue Heron." 

The JV girls had a very impressive run as they earned first place with a perfect score of 15 Tuesday evening. This was done through the efforts of Alexa Landeros, Jocelyn Anderson, Emma Wallace, Charlotte Chesley and Danielle Barnett as they filled in the top five spots in the race.

Dagnon said this race came close with 800 meters left as Barnett sat in sixth place and was 100 meters behind Holly Orth from West Valley. In that final stretch Barnet was able to close the gap and beat Orth by almost five seconds to secure a perfect victory. 

"That's almost insurmountable, but then it set us off in a really good moment," said the coach. "It's just unheard-of to gain that much to put us in a perfect score for the JV girls. 

Following the excitement of the girls JV was the boys JV squad who scored 22 points in their first-place team finish. The boys showed some overall depth as they had six boys place in the top 10 with Owen Martel, Benjamin Bishop, Vincent Hunt, Grayson Barlow, Ariah Torres and Duane Zamora. 

Owen Martel took first overall (17:19.4) and Benjamin Bishop was not too far behind with a third-place finish (17:36.2). 

Dagnon said the momentum from the early JV victories fed into the success found by the varsity squads as the day went on. 

The girls varsity finished with a score of 28, which was comfortably ahead of West Valley's 52, said the coach. 

"It was the big showdown between us and West Valley," said Dagnon. "West Valley's been ranked higher than us in the state rankings and we felt like we belonged. We know West Valley belongs, but we came in and we really did some damage." 

The girls had seven runners make the top 15 in varsity: Rachel Nofziger, Natalie Vehrs, Aspen Hoenes, Amelia Olascon, Emily Bong, Kaytlyn Russell and Sarah Humpherys.  

"That's dominating because if districts were (Tuesday), that would have put our entire group of kids qualifying as individuals for state," said Dagnon. "That rarely happens. I've been on one team where that happened and it's a special day when you do it like that." 

Nofziger was the top finisher in third (18:52.8) which was not only a personal best, but also moved her into second all-time from MLHS girls 5K list to surpass Jennifer (Carpenter) Bannon's record of 18:58.0 from the 1986 Big 9 AAA District Championships. 

Aspen Hoenes still holds the school record of 18:49.1 from the 2025 Big 9 District 4 4A Championships. 

Nofziger was followed immediately by Natalie Vehrs (19:00.4), Aspen Hoenes (19:04.9) and Amelia Olascon (19:11.0). The coach said this finish was crushing as it placed a huge gap between West Valley's number one runner and their number two runner. 

"It was crazy just how much distance they wanted to put between them and they just kind of shut the door on it after that," he said. 

The boys just came out ahead for a first place finish with 40 points to Eisenhower's 43. MLHS had five boys finish in the top 11: Lane Christensen, Maxwell Jolley, Liam Roseburg, Jonathan Sandoval and Colton Lucero. 

Christensen led the team with a fourth-place finish (16:09.5) and was followed by Jolley (16:18.9) in seventh and Roseburg (16:29.5) in eighth. Sandoval (16:37.6) and Lucero (16:41.9) were also highlighted for their runs as they took 10th and 11th respectively. 

"You're in 10th and 11th and you're running 16:41," said Dagnon. "The year we went to state, that would have been our first runner. It's just crazy to think (about)." 

When everything was tallied, the girls finished an undefeated league campaign to claim the CBBN championship, and the boys secured second place in the final league standings after a competitive season. 

"They were very focused and it was super cool," said Dagnon. 

Earning an undefeated season for first with the girls and taking second with the boys was no easy task and the coach said he attributes a lot of the team's success to how well each athlete fights for one another. 

"They will really work hard in practice and in the offseason because they care so much about the team and each other," said Dagnon. "They don't want to let the other ones down. We have a family atmosphere on our team, and they absolutely care about each other." 

As the team looks to finish the season strong, the coach said he has no doubt the team can keep up their momentum heading into districts next week. The athletes know the history of the MLHS cross country team and have the ambition to build on to that legacy. 

"They want to be called the fastest team every year and right now our Moses Lake boys are the fastest that's ever been fielded in my opinion," he said. "They are just ultra dialed in. When you look at the top Lane (Christensen), Max (Jolley) and Liam Roseburg, they practice so very well and they're just sponges for knowledge." 

Another aspect of the team that Dagnon said makes the success they've seen this season possible is from the hard work of the assistant coaches Joe Johnson, Christian O'Shea, Jodi O'Shea, Brendan Thompson and Bradley Tripp.  

"They are phenomenal coaches," said Dagnon. "My staff is second to none and the kids did not get where they're at without each of these assistant coaches bringing out their best and we are absolutely fortunate." 

The Mavs will prepare for the Big 9 District 5 Cross Country Championships at Franklin Park in Yakima. The competition will be Oct. 29 starting at 2 p.m. 

RESULTS 

Personal Record: PR, Season Record: SR 

5k Varsity Boys – first, 40 points 

4 – Lane Christensen, 16:09.5 

7 – Maxwell Jolley, 16:18.9 

8 – Liam Roseburg, 16:29.5 

10 – Johnathan Sandoval, 16:37.6 

11 – Colton Lucero, 16:41.9 

15 – Gabriel Cabiao, 16:52.6 PR 

16 – Gillis Ward-Guthrie, 16:57.2 PR 

19 – Noah Demchuk, 17:04.7 

5k Vasity Girls – first, 28 points 

3 – Rachel Nofzinger, 18:52.8 PR 

4 – Natalie Vehrs, 19:00.4 PR 

5 – Aspen Hoenes, 19:04.9 

6 – Amelia Olascon, 19:11.0 PR 

10 – Emily Bong, 19:30.3 PR 

12 – Kaytlyn Russell, 19:49.7 

14 – Sarah Humpherys, 20:11.6 PR 

20 – Khloe Helm, 20:54.1 

2 Miles Unified Boys 

1 – Torin Trexler, 17:58.8 

2 Miles Unified Girls 

1 – Naomi Nofzinger, 16:13.2 

5k JV Boys – first, 22 points 

1 – Own Martel, 17:19.4 

3 – Benjamin Bishop, 17:36.2 

5 – Vincent Hunt, 17:44.5 

6 – Grayson Barlow, 18:01.7 

7 – Ariah Torres, 18:02.7 

8 – Duane Zamora, 18:15.1 

13 – Keenan Russell, 18:32.9 

14 – Harrison Holt, 18:36.2 

17 – Liam Michie, 18:47.0 

18 – Graham Larkin, 18:47.7 

19 – Carson Cook, 19:01.3 

21 – Braden Gagnon, 19:05.4  

23 – Claudio Garza IV, 19:19.4 

25 – Isaac McClendon, 19:26.8 

28 – Silas Molitor, 19:34.5 

32 – Archer Turnbull, 19:45.0 

41 – Charles Paul III, 20:12.1 

50 – Patricio Avendano, 20:24.8 

51 – Easton Bellamy, 20:28.3 

62 – Ethan Adamos, 20:50.4 

69 – Finnegan Austin, 21:05.9 

79 – Luke Noble, 21:45.8 

92 – Westley Jacobson, 22:41.4 

108 – Eric Zheng, 24:03.3 

113 – Derrick Perkes, 25:03.3 

118 – Joseph Richmond, 26:58.3 

127 – Joseph Maldonado, 30:40.5 

130 – Jacob Tacher, 35:58.2 

5K JV Girls, first, 15 points 

1 – Alexa Landeros, 20:52.5 

2 – Jocelyn Anderson, 21:17.8 

3 – Emma Wallace, 21:46.5 

4 – Charlotte Chesley, 22:17.5 

5 – Danielle Barnett, 22:20.1 

7 – Adelyn Chamberlin, 23:14.9 

8 – Ashley Cabiao, 23:38.4 

13 – Afton Payne, 24:29.8 

14 – Genesis Anderson, 24:36.2 

25 – Emily Yates, 26:10.5 

26 – Natalie Ottmar, 26:16.6 

30 – Hadlie Cox, 27:03.5 

35 – Kezhya Scheel, 29:25.8 

36 – Emily Roueche, 29:29.9 

40 – Jaiden Adamos, 34:23.8

    MLHS athlete Kaytlyn Russell works to finish strong in the Wenatchee meet Tuesday evening.
  

    Emily Bong and Sarah Humpherys from Moses Lake run side by side in Tuesday's league meet.
  

    Lane Christensen from MLHS finishes the race in fourth during Tuesday's meet in Wenatchee.
  

    Moses Lake's Luke Noble keeps his pace as he runs across the path in Wenatchee's league meet.