Southern Nevada 2013 Cross Country Preview

2013 looks like the year of the seniors. This is the strongest class of high school 12^th graders in southern Nevada in many years, certainly this millennium. There are a couple of exceptions that I will address but especially among the girls, where the top four girls at state (and six of the top ten), in D-1 last year were all juniors, this is their year. And it’s not far off from that with the boys. Seven of the top 15 at state in D-1 and the two top-three returning runners in D-1A are also seniors from the South.

Let’s get to it, starting with the girls. How about this for a Magnificent Seven: (1) Katie Gorczyca, two-time state champ; (2) Sydney Badger, coming off the best track season any D-1 girl has had since Mel Lawrence was running for Reno: (3) Marissa Suan, runner-up at state last year and third the year before; (4) Sara Dort, third at state last year and two-time Sunrise Region champ; (5) Zanae Jones, seventh at state last year and a three-time state qualifier; (6) Logan Lucas, tenth at state last year and also a three-time state qualifier; (7) Ebonique Diaz, third at state in the 1A race. They’re all seniors.

So who’s left? Before yesterday’s Palo Verde Labor Day Classic, I would have said “no one, ” at least no one likely to challenge for a top-five finish at state, in D-1 anyway. Enter Brooke Locey. The Desert Oasis junior, who was injured most of last year, has returned, looking even stronger than she did as a freshman in 2011. Locey finished third among all runners at Palo, behind only Badger and Jones, and then came back at the Las Vegas Invitational and finished fourth overall. Yes, I’d say Brooke is back!

As for Gorczyca, who didn’t run at Palo, Katie’s performance at the Las Vegas Invitational—second overall behind Sara Dort—showed that the defending state champ is not going to relinquish her title without a fight.

There are a few other girls who I expect to be among the elite this fall. I’ll mention four who are members of the Las Vegas Track Club.

Julianna Brooks (Cimarron Memorial), another senior, was an individual state qualifier last year. She had the 13^th best time at the Labor Day Classic. Julianna did not run well at the LVI (24 minutes and change for the 5K), but it’s still too early in the season to write her off.

Kate Vanderstelt at sophomore at Palo Verde was the number-two D-1 9^th-grade finisher at state last year (first from the South). Kate finished a close second to Coronado’s Danielle Greene in the frosh-soph race at Palo Verde. Kate and her Palo teammates did not run at the LVI.

Jinks Heerema, a junior from The Meadows, was third at state (D-3) last fall. Jinks finished sixth in her age group (fourth among current high runners) at the 2013 Legends Run. Jinks finished sixth overall at LVI, second behind teammate Bailey Gosse. Both girls will be among the elite this year. It’s a shame, in my view, that they are D-3 runners. They will remain “under the radar” as a result, but could go 1-2 at state in November.  

Hannah Pavlov, a junior at Faith Lutheran, was sixth at state last fall (D-1A). Hannah ran at Palo and had the 12^th best time but did not run at the LVI.

Which six girls teams are likely to go to state from Division 1? I’ll go with the “usual suspects”: Coronado (defending state champs), Green Valley, and Foothill from Sunrise and Centennial (runner up at state), Arbor View (number three at state), and Palo Verde. Actually, all six of these teams went to state in 2012.

That was the easy part. Who among those, if any, will prevail in Reno in November? Possibly none of them! Galena and Carson, especially, will be tough to beat on their home turf. But of the southern six pack, Arbor View, Coronado, Palo Verde, and Centennial look the strongest, deepest. All have front runners: Arbor View with Zanae Jones, Coronado with Sara Dort, Palo with Marissa Suan, and Centennial with Sydney Badger. Yesterday (Labor Day Classic) it was Arbor View who prevailed over Palo, Coronado, Green Valley, and Centennial (Foothill wasn’t there). I know state meets aren’t won in August, but I do like what I saw with Tyrel Cooper’s team of girls. Arbor View will be tough to beat. Coronado and Centennial will be the likely challengers. Mark Tondryk graduated his number three girl at Coronado, Kristen Morrill, but he has a full stable to work with, including newcomer Danielle Greene who was first in the Frosh-Soph race at Palo on Saturday. That leaves Centennial. Roy Sessions works magic in track, but…. The Lady Bulldogs were favored to win last year and didn’t. Roy has to find some complements to Sydney and Katie and Arden Holden to win state. And from what I saw this past Saturday at the Vet, I’d say he is “lookin’ good.” Centennial had five other runners, in addition to Katie, in the top 30 at LVI: Marieta Wright, Eris Karnafel, Gabby Altmannsberger, Kayla Roberts, and Addie Hall. With Sydney in Ohio on a recruiting trip and Arden playing soccer, the Bulldogs still finished third overall on composite, behind only Arbor View and Coronado. That’s scary good.

In 1A I like Faith Lutheran’s chances, but good luck beating defending champs Elko. The northern teams in 1A appear too strong, especially at altitude, although Ebonique Diaz from Sunrise Mountain should be in the hunt for the individual title (if she shows up. Sunrise Mountain is yet to emerge this fall).  

D-3 will belong to The Meadows. The Lady Mustangs really caught some attention when they placed four of their girls among the top 22 finishers at the Vet on Saturday—Bailey Gosse (5), Jinks Heerema (6), Delaney Gosse (18), and Krista Thompson (22)—a feat bettered only by Arbor View and Centennial. The Lady Mustang’s fifth runner, Cassidy Gosse (yes, they are triplets) was 82^nd overall (26 minutes and change), but The Meadows still managed to finish fifth overall based on composite times. Impressive. And as an aside, the top finisher in the Middle School race was Ellen Hirshberg, who ran Unattached but just happens to be an 8^th grader at… are you ready for this? The Meadows! You heard it here first. Ellen Hirshberg will be the next frosh phenom from southern Nevada. The other Meadows girls, by the way, are all juniors.

Final thoughts on the girls. This will be Sydney’s year. She has clearly separated herself from the pack already. At the Labor Day Classic she dominated, running 18:54.5 over the 5K course at Palo. The next best time was Zanae Jones’ 19:41.5. Sydney has had a rocky history in state cross country. I suspect she is on a mission to win this year.

No doubt about it, Sydney is special, the best distance runner in Nevada since Mel Lawrence. I predict Sydney will be the second girl from southern Nevada to be a Footlocker finalist (Abby Miller did it three times!). If Sydney makes it she will join an elite group of Nevada girls who qualified for the finals at Footlocker: Mel and Collier Lawrence, Abby Miller, and Inga Thompson (a three-time Olympian as a cyclist).

Let’s turn to the boys. Again, seniors rule, although not so convincingly. Both state runners up (D-1 and D-1A) are seniors: Eldorado’s Eddie Esquivel and SECTA’s Martin Ponce. Also seniors are the Centennial duo of Jackson Carter (fourth at state last year) and George Espino (tenth at state last year; third at state in 2011). Then there’s Nick Oberdin (Shadow Ridge), also a senior. Nick was sixth at state in 2012.

Other seniors who were Top 15 at state last year include Frankie Martinez (Desert Oasis), 11^th; Cole Jones (Arbor View), 12^th; and Seth Wright (Centennial), 14^th last year when he ran for Cimarron. From 1A, besides Ponce, “Freddy” Amon (Clark) was fourth at state last fall.

Five of the above boys ran in this year’s Palo Verde Labor Day Classic. Jackson Carter won; Cole Jones was third; Espino and Ponce finished fifth and sixth (based on composite times); and Frankie Martinez had the eleventh-fastest time.

Add Spencer Day, another senior at Centennial, who was 24^th at state last fall (Centennials sixth runner). Day had the seventh-fastest time at the Labor Day Classic and sixth-best time at LVI.  

The top non seniors in southern Nevada this fall will likely be junior’s Dajour Baxton (Centennial), third at state last fall, and David Peters (Shadow Ridge), eighth at state in 2012. Four sophomores positioned to join the elite this fall are Noah Landers (Palo Verde), fourth-fastest time at this year’s Palo Classic; Colin Schaefer (Coronado), seventh-fastest time at the Classic (actually, both he and Spencer Day ran 17:13.0, in different races) and the top D-1 freshman at state last fall; Brian Espino (Centennial), George’s younger brother, who had the ninth-best time at the Classic; and Dominic Roberts (Centennial), eleventh-best time at LVI, the last runner under 18.   

Top teams from the South this fall? It’s Centennial by a landslide. The Bulldogs are the defending state champions and likely to repeat, whether the meet was held in the North or South or on the Moon! Actually, it’s in the North this year at San Rafael Park in Reno.)

After Centennial there is a huge gap. Of the D-1 teams, last year it was Coronado, Shadow Ridge, Palo Verde, Green Valley, and Foothill joining Centennial at State. Those are likely choices again in 2013 with possibly Arbor View and Desert Oasis challenging in Sunset and Liberty sneaking past Foothill in from Sunrise. Tony Kyriacou’s Roadrunners from SECTA should do well. SECTA, Faith Lutheran, and Clark will likely be the top D-1A teams from the South.

So which boy from the South has the best chance of winning at state this year?  Last year’s winner, Jordan Cardenas from Reno, has graduated. I think it comes down to Esquivel, Carter, or Braxton. Any of the three could take the top step on the podium.

Eddie Esquivel didn’t look like a top contender at LVT (17^th overall); I suspect he was holding back. Eddie was so far back in the back at the one-mile mark on Saturday I almost missed him, but he moved up steadily from there. Eddie was 11^th at LVI last year. Don’t count the Eldorado senior out.

From 1A, I like Martin Ponce’s chances. Last year’s winner, Connor Henderson from South Tahoe, has graduated. He and Martin were the only 1A runners to break 17 last fall on the course at the Vet. The SECTA senior was third overall at the Vet at LVI, behind only the dynamic duo from Centennial. Martin’s time at LVI? 17:03.0. But don’t count out Amon from Clark. Freddy was fifth overall at the LVI this year and only 13 seconds behind Ponce.

That’s a wrap. Best of luck to all our harriers this fall. May the best teams win. I’ll be watching.

(Phil Lawton)