Shadle’s Nelson wins Highlander
Shadle Park’s Andrea Nelson is the latest female freshman distance running phenomenon to flash upon the scene.
She had her coming out on Wednesday with a victory in her first Greater Spokane League race. Running Saturday on her home course at the Highlander Invitational cross country meet, she added an exclamation mark.
Nelson’s 14:52 in the varsity girls race was the sixth fastest time in meet history. In so doing, she outsprinted Davis sophomore Sandra Martinez.
Nelson’s time was a minute shy of former national champion Zoe Nelson’s record set in 2002. Last year, Mt. Spokane standout Megan O’Reilly won in 13:53.
Nelson ran varsity because of her ability, coach Bob Isitt had said. Her performance impressed him even more.
“During the race I told her to push it and take the kick out of Wenatchee’s Kristen Ballinger, for one,” he said. “What happens? She outkicks them.”
Isitt knew that Nelson, whose brother Rich was a high state placer and sister Cami was also a state competitor, had some speed. Her kick, he said, was an eye-opener.
“That was one of the best races I’ve seen,” said Isitt.
Nelson did what was asked, shaking Ballinger at the midpoint of the 2.5 mile race. When Martinez worked to challenge the Shadle neophyte over the latter stage of the race, she was up to the challenge.
She held off Martinez’s surge with a little over a half-mile remaining. During the final sprint, Nelson’s leg-buckling finish carried her to a three-second triumph. Martinez’s 14:55 was eighth-best all-time and one of just nine (O’Reilly did it twice) under 15 minutes.
“I wanted to do what they (her brother and sister) did and maybe better,” Nelson said following her victory. “I’d always come to the Highlander and watched them run. It felt cool.”
She admitted that Martinez’s surge led to thoughts of losing, but in her mind she knew how badly she wanted to win.
Nelson’s victory was one of seven during races at the Highlander – freshman boys and girls, sophomore, junior and senior boys, a combined girls race for smaller school varsity and bigger school junior varsity runners, and the varsity girls.
The senior boys race pitted GSL favorites Ferris and Mead against each other for the first of perhaps five meetings.
This one was all Saxons, 14-51 over the Panthers, minus injured Mead sixth-place state finisher Taylor Nepon.
Ferris’ David Hickerson and Cameron Quackenbush finished 1-2, nine seconds apart, with Steve Olsen and Nick Laplante taking fifth and sixth. Only 23 seconds separated them all.
Hickerson, 18th in state cross country and third in the state 800 last year, has parlayed endurance and speed into substantially faster times so far this year.
He clocked 12:27 (duplicating Rich Nelson’s 2002 all-time third-best time). Eighteen seconds faster than last year, Hickerson credited speed workouts last spring and some high-mileage workouts this summer.
“My main motivation is it’s my senior year and you have to give it all you’ve got,” he said. “I’m just going out to win now.”
Quackenbush finished in front of Mead’s Dylan Hatcher. Last fall a burst appendix sidelined Quackenbush for much of the season. He wound up among the top 25 at the State meet.
In the junior boys race, Central Valley beat Ferris 37-92, placing five runners in the top 16. Polson’s Logan Torgison beat last year’s sophomore winner, Colville’s Justin Rose.
Colville two-event state track champion Brittney Williams repeated as girls combined race winner, lowering her record time by 16 seconds to 15:34 for the victorious Indians team.
Northwest Christian freshman Lisa Vandenburg set a record 15:14, nearly a minute faster than the old mark.
Mead beat Cheney 31-95 in the sophomore boys race. Andrew Gonzales of Southridge won over Anthony Brown of University.
Ferris beat Lewis and Clark 32-70 in the freshman race, won by Mt. Spokane’s Allan Schroeder over Tiger Chris Ennis.