WP Runners Academic Champs

Friday the WP boys' cross country team learned that they are the 2010 WIAA State Academic Champions for 2B Cross Country. "This is a huge honor," said coach Joanna Lanning. "The team will be recognized at the state meet on Nov. 6." More information on this can be found at the WIAA website. WP will attend the district meet on Thursday, Oct. 28, in Pomeroy. Meanwhile, WP runners have worked up to a finefinish this season, and their perfor­mance on Friday, Oct. 22, at the Kyle Burnside Memorial Wildhorse Invite, in Pendle­ton, Ore., was no exception.

"It was a terrific way to finish our regular season," said coach Joanna Lanning. "It was a lovely fall day on a beautiful course." The Wildhorse Invite was a huge meet with 16 high schools represented from Or­egon and Washington. Among participants were all divisions from 5A schools all the way down to just two B schools, WWVA and W-P. Thirteen middle schools were present.

The meet began, "in finefashion," Lanning said, with WP middle schooler Trent Hafen placing second in the combined 3K MS race with a time of 11:15. Eighty-nine boys and 87 girls ran in this race together.

Another WP junior high student, Trey Potts, placed 47th with a time of 13:56, but he was fighting a foot injury. In the varsity boys' race, Seth Deal took fourth out of 157 competitors, running a tough, gutsy race. His time was 16:43, just 25 seconds from the winner, Javier Velas­co of Hermiston at 16:18. Overall the boys' team placed 7th out of 12 teams, all of them larger schools. WWVA didn't have a com­plete boys' team. WP's two girl runners did not have their best day, Lan­ning

reported. Isabel Benito was 52nd with a time of 23:16, and Anjelica Bedolla was 89th with 27:48. One hundred girls ran in the varsity race.