The Bellarmine Prep girls are counting on a mix of youth, speed and heart to propel them to a state cross-country title on Saturday.
“We’re pretty motivated,” junior Daryl Phill said. “We want to do well and win state. I think we have enough heart, and our minds are set on it.”
On the heels of winning the Narrows League 4A and West Central District team titles, the Lions are looking to add the Class 4A girls state cross-country championship trophy to their already bountiful hardware haul.
Coach Mark Ellis isn’t counting out the competition, though. The second-ranked Lions defeated SPSL champion Tahoma by a mere two points last weekend. And top-ranked Redmond figures to have a say in determining the champion.
The state meet for all classifications begins Saturday at Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco. The Gig Harbor boys are ranked No. 1 in Class 4A and will try to win their first title since 1995.
“It will be an interesting state race,” Ellis said. “The favorite is Redmond, with the way they have run the last couple of weeks. Tahoma is tough, and I’m not going to discount the defending champs, Eisenhower (of Yakima).”
Still, he said, “We’re ready to go.”
Phill said that she was excited to see the team’s potential at the beginning of this season, and thankful that her teammates have been so successful in what she says has not been her best season. She placed 11th at the district meet, finishing in 19 minutes, 33.1 seconds.
“The newcomers are really good, and the girls from last year have showed good progress,” she said. “I’m just glad I have another season to try to get better than I have been this year.”
At the state meet, the Lions plan to run together, working their way to the front of the pack.
“We need to keep each other motivated, saying ‘Come on, let’s get up to the front, come with me,’ ” Phill said.
Ellis said his team benefits from having what he calls “young depth” – no seniors in the top five, and about nine girls that the team can draw upon to run in the top group.
They’re not yet the best group he has coached at Bellarmine Prep – that would be the 2004 team, which won the 4A state championship – but he is pleased with this group’s progress.
“They’re still young, a lot of first-year runners, which is exciting to see them develop,” he said. “A lot of them don’t even realize how good they are.”
Count Hannah Derby among them.
Ellis persuaded the sophomore to trade soccer for cross country after she enjoyed a wildly successful track season last spring, winning the 400 at the state meet. But Derby wasn’t expecting to make a name for herself in cross country just yet.
“It’s really awesome,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting it, really, since I hadn’t done cross country before, but I really like it, and I’m glad our team is so good this year.”
Ellis said it has been fun watching Derby “start to figure out the 5K.”
Derby, who placed 12th at the district meet, finishing two seconds ahead of teammate Jordan Thurston, said that she gets a lot of support from her teammates.
“The team dynamic,” she said, “is really fun.”
blog.thenewstribuncom/preps
STATE CROSS COUNTRY MEETS
Where: Sun Willows Golf Course, Pasco
When: Saturday
Defending champions: Boys – 4A Eisenhower, 3A North Central, 2A Sehome, 1A Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls), 2B/1B Tri-Cities Prep. Girls – 4A Eisenhower, 3A Glacier Peak, 2A Sehome, 1A Riverside, 2B/1B Northwest Christian (Lacey)
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