The high school cross country and volleyball teams are on the move this weekend.

The former to Sandy Beach, the latter to Nome and Ketchikan.

The Capital Invitational, a 5-kilometer race at Sandy Beach on Saturday morning, is the first meet of the season for Juneau-Douglas and Thunder Mountain High Schools. The boys teams will race at 11 a.m. and the girls at 11:45 a.m.

Attending the meet with JDHS and TMHS will be the Ketchikan Kings, Petersburg Vikings, Sitka Wolves, Hoonah Braves, Metlakatla Chiefs, Wrangell Wolves, Haines Glacier Bears, Skagway Panthers and Hydaburg Warriors.

The 5-kilometer course will begin and end on the Savikko Park softball field behind the Treadwell Ice Arena. The runners will make two shorter loops and one longer loop on the Treadwell Mine Historic Trail to the south.

Both JDHS and TMHS cross country coaches Merry Ellefson and Scott May say youth is on their side.

“We have like 62 runners out, it’s the biggest team ever,” Ellefson said. “It’s a solid group of runners, like whatever their ability is, 50 of those people are working really hard. … Everyone is getting faster, which makes your team more powerful.”

May’s team — though much smaller than Ellefson’s — is similarly bringing lots of new runners into the mix.

“Our freshmen outnumber all other classes this year, and we have several upperclassmen who are competing for the first time, so this really is a learning experience for the majority of both our teams,” May said in an email. “The boys will be looking for experience to build for the future, while the girls will be looking to see if they can be competitive with the top teams.”

All signs point to JDHS as the top girls team in the region. Reigning state champion Sadie Tuckwood, a sophomore, and Anna Iverson, also a sophomore, will be difficult to beat.

“This is the deepest girls team that we’ve coached and the strongest girls team that we’ve coached overall,” JDHS co-coach Tristan Knutson-Lombardo said.

The JDHS boys will be led by Arne Ellefson-Carnes, Clem Taylor-Roth, Shadrach Stitz and Tim McKenna. All four have state meet experience they will put to use this season.

“With guys, we really know our top-four, so our five through seven will be kind of interesting to know who ends up there,” McKenna said.

Notable Falcons runners include Sally Thompson, Reece Bleakley, Shafer Suzuki, Connor Norman and Jacob Babcock.

North to the future

The JDHS volleyball team travels to Nome this weekend where they will play two games against the Nanooks of Nome-Beltz High School.

It’s the second year in a row the Crimson Bears will travel to the Land of Permafrost. They played in Barrow (Utqiagvik) last season, where they sampled Muktuk, a traditional food of the Inuit culture of frozen whale blubber. They also toured town when they weren’t on the volleyball court.

Now, they can’t wait to see similarly-sized Nome (pop: 3,600).

“When we play Ketchikan or Thunder Mountain, we want to play our A-game every time,” senior Abby Meiners said. “Even if it’s not a conference game, we want to show them we are here to play. But in Nome, we have the opportunity to work out our kinks a little more and play as a team and gel together where it’s not as competitive.”

The Falcons volleyball team heads to Ketchikan for a jamboree with Ketchikan, Sitka and Mt. Edgecumbe High Schools. Unlike JDHS — which can only afford to take its varsity to the far north — TMHS is traveling with their varsity, junior varsity and C teams.

For a JDHS and TMHS volleyball season preview, see Friday’s copy of the Empire.

Football to Kenai

The JDHS football team goes to the Kenai Peninsula this weekend to play Kenai Central. The Kardinals defense will have to contain Liam Van Sickle and Lance Galletes-Fenumiai, who both scored touchdowns in JDHS’ 32-8 win over Ketchikan in Week 2.

The TMHS football team is idle on a bye week.

Tips for spectating cross country

1. Take notice of packs of runners, not just individuals.

“If you’re paying attention to four people, and then all of a sudden one of those comes out on the next lap and you don’t see the other three, you’re like, ‘Whoa, that person made a move.’” — Merry Ellefson

2. Dress in what you would run in.

“It’s the best spectator sport — cross country — because you are engaged as spectators if you want to be. You can run around, too. It gets your adrenaline going because then you are trying to figure out can you get to the next place to watch the next runner.” – Tristan Knutson-Lombardo

3. Arrive a half-hour early before the first race.

The quickest boys competitor will finish the race in just 17 minutes. The speediest girls will finish in less than 20 minutes. They won’t wait for you to get there, either.

Know & Go

What: Capital City Cross Country Invitational

Where: Treadwell Mine Historic Trail (Sandy Beach)

When: Saturday, Aug. 26

Time: 11 a.m. boys start., 11:45 a.m. girls start

Forecast: Rain. High near 52.

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• Contact sports reporter Nolin Ainsworth at 523-2272 or nolin.ainsworth@juneauempire.com.

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