If you build it, they will come.
The Athletics East running team started its offseason running program on a high note last Sunday under muddy and sloppy conditions at the USATF Junior Olympic State Meet at the Hidden Hills Polo Club in West Linn with several male and female competitors qualifying for the upcoming regional meet.
AE coach Heather Fitz-Gustafson has been impressed by the turnout for winter running, as she has 16 athletes from across the Columbia River Gorge area signed up to the program — one of the largest numbers in recent memory.
“I think more kids are coming out because they are starting to hear that there is a local running club in the gorge, and it makes it more fun for people to join,” Fitz-Gustafson said. “The more kids that do it, the more they tell their friends, and the more the word gets spread. I think it’s awesome to see this running group back up and going again.”
Of the 16 harriers, 11 punched their regionals tickets, led by the girls’ 14U team of Amanda Nygard (Hermiston), Jordyn Murphy (Pendleton), Maddie Nichols (Heppner) and Emily Johnson (The Dalles) that placed third overall in their age group.
Nygard finished her 4,000-meter run in sixth place, Murphy crossed the finish line in 20th place, Nichols was 21st and Johnson ended her race in 26th place.
Zoe Orion (The Dalles) added 43rd place and will join the rest of the 14U girls’ team at regionals.
“To have the girls’ team qualify for regionals, it’s awesome to see,” Fitz-Gustafson said. “It’s great that they get to run the same course again for regionals, it gives them an advantage over the kids who have never raced here. This course has always been muddy and slightly sloppy, so never really fast times, but if everyone keeps up their training, they are all capable of setting personal records.”
Kallyn Wilkins (Condon) qualified for regionals as an individual after placing 15th in her 12U division race, and joining her will be Cydney Sanchez (Hermiston), who scored 20th place.
In the 14U class, The Dalles’ Dillon Dorado wound up in 28th place to vault into the regional race after his 4,000-meter event.
“For a lot of these kids, it’s the first time they have run the 4k, so they didn’t have any prior times to compare to, so it will be a nice transition for those kids that will be in high school next year and have to race a 5k,” Fitz-Gustafson said.
In the 18U run, Hunter Nichols, Michael Lantz, Trent Smith and Zayne Troeger all made their mark for a regional qualification, with Nichols, out of Heppner, taking home top honors.
Lantz, from The Dalles, picked up third place; Smith, of Heppner, earned sixth-place honors and Umatilla’s Troeger added to the regional list with a seventh-place finish.
“I was very impressed with everyone racing so well,” Fitz-Gustafson said. “Two of the boys had just competed at their high school state cross country meet the day before and came back to race again the very next day. Again, these kids train well after the season is over and that takes a lot of dedication and time.”
In his 3,000-meter run, Paul Kelly, from Dufur, grabbed 40th place, and TD’s Lucas Mitchell was good for 59th place in the 12U division.
Lucy Booth scored 43rd place in the 12U race, and in the 14U event, Spencer Coburn, of The Dalles, ended up 63rd place.
“The Dalles kids get to train with each other year-round, but some of the other kids from farther out are training on their own and then we meet up at the races,” Fitz-Gustafson said. “To train by yourself day-after-day, when it’s getting colder and darker, just shows what these kids are made of.”
Fitz-Gustafson was beaming about this team, and she also gave a compliment to her uncle Russ Nichols for his recruiting work and to Angela Hanson for her organizational work.
Athletics East was started in the late 1980s by Greg Gustafson and had been on a hiatus until last season.
The team was re-organized by Fitz-Gustafson and Russ Nichols as a vehicle to give Eastern Oregon runners a chance to continue racing against tough competition during the offseason. The primary goal is to build both elite youth track and field and cross country teams.
“I think it’s great that girls and boys that compete against each other during middle school season can come together and race on the same team,” Fitz-Gustafson added. “These kids are very competitive and state was the first time a lot of these kids met each other and they came together and raced great as a team, and they were getting each other pumped up before the race. Running is an extremely hard sport and for these kids to extend their season by over a month is just awesome.”
The top 20 individuals and top 3 teams at regionals in West Linn will qualify for nationals at the end of November.
Athletics East is looking for local kids that would like to compete all over the Northwest Territories in track and cross-country during the offseason.
If a parent or athlete would like more information, they can email hfitzgustafson@hotmail.com.
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