Juneau boys post perfect score at Sitka Invite X-C meet
Friday was a perfect day for the Juneau-Douglas High School boys' cross-country running squad.
The Crimson Bears finished 1-2-3-4-5 for a perfect team score of 15 at the Sitka Invitational. Junior co-captain Tristan Knutson-Lombardo led the way with a time of 16 minutes, 32 seconds on the 5-kilometer course (3.1 miles) at the Sitka National Historic Park.
Knutson-Lombardo - returning from an injury - was followed by, in order, sophomore Wesley Dinnan (16:56), sophomore Tyler Dinnan (16:58), freshman Ray Huebschen (17:21) and senior co-captain Tim Davin (17:25).
"It was a good team grouping," Juneau coach Guy Thibodeau said. "Tristan came back strong, and it didn't seem to him like it was a tough effort. ... Ray Huebschen continues to move up. He ran a real strong race."
The Juneau girls also finished well, using a strong 1-2-3 finish by senior captain Greta Thibodeau (20:07), sophomore Jaci Hayden (20:11) and sophomore Jordan Moser (20:14) to win the team title with 19 points.
Sophomore Jordan Harvey, who finished fifth in 21:09, and sophomore Gretchen Dierking (10th, 22:36) were the other scoring runners for the Crimson Bear girls.
Once again, a close pack of Juneau girls led the way - and the frontrunners pushed each other on.
"We encourage each other during the race," Hayden said.
The Sitka boys and girls were a distant second, scoring 69 and 50 points, respectively. The meet featured 100 runners from 10 Southeast schools. Complete results can be found on the Scoreboard on Page B2.
Friday's race was the first time the Crimson Bears saw runners from Sitka, Mount Edgecumbe, Skagway and Haines. Having seen just about all the runners in Region V this fall, Guy Thibodeau said he feels Juneau's depth for both boys and girls should bode well for the rest of the Southeast season.
Next week the Crimson Bear JV runners travel to Skagway, and the Juneau varsity travels north to the Palmer Invitational. The Palmer Invite is one of the largest meets of the season, and is held on the course that hosts the state meet later in September.
Tyler Dinnan said he's looking forward to seeing where the Crimson Bears stand in Palmer; the meet will provide their last first-hand glimpse of "up north" competition until state.
"We've got a good group this year," he said, and added that the team has already exceeded his expectations for this point in the season.
"I'm looking forward to seeing how we stack up against the rest of the state."