TDHS Boys' Cross Country Win 4A Title at State
“Be present in all things and thankful for all things.” -Maya Angelou
TDHS Cross Country Boys display their 4A state title.
By Jill Pearson
With Thanksgiving ahead, it’s small wonder that thoughts shift to gratitude in November: a chance to take inventory of the year, discard the hassles, celebrate the triumphs, and round up the blessings.
It may also have something to do with the fact that the State Cross Country meet is also the first weekend of November, and for the first time since 1997 (2003 for Wahtonka), The Dalles boys’ team are the state champions.
It all still feels a little unreal, even as I scrubbed the mud off the tent tarps today: girls got the wild card! The season is finished! And the boys won the 4A State Title at Lane Community College on Saturday, Nov. 5.!
Egan Ziegenhagen, battling a stomach bug, was also within range of his PR. Behind him- or rather right beside him, though, was his twin brother Vincent, who ran out of his mind to finish in 17:41.7, a 9-second PR and .2 seconds ahead.
Like good form in the finish, the healthy way to go through a season as a coach is to keep your head down: just focus on each practice, running well in each meet, hydrating, bringing snacks, logging miles on Saturday runs.
“Do your boys know how good they are, or how good they could be?” my dad had asked on Wednesday, Nov. 2, before State, a comment echoed by Coach Bob Thouvenel the next day. “If everyone runs their best races, we might have a shot at it.” I deliberately hadn’t paid much attention to the rankings- maybe the runners had - but none made much of a deal about it.
That is, not until the last mile of the boys’ 5k.
Juan Diego Contreras and Leo Lemann, the boys’ 1 and 2, were about where they were expected to be: behind Marshfield’s Alexander Garcia-Silver, and towards the front of a tight pack between Cottage Groves’ Jaden Owens and Philomath’s Ben Hernandez. Egan Ziegenhagen, battling a stomach bug, was also within range of his PR. Behind him- or rather right beside him, though, was his twin brother Vincent, who ran out of his mind to finish in 17:41.7, a 9-second PR and .2 seconds ahead. Hot on their heels was senior Kayden McCavic, whose 23rd place finish as the team’s fifth runner helped edge The Dalles into first at 57 points ahead of Philomath’s 60. At 17:48 and three places ahead of Philomath’s fifth runner, it was a 30 second PR for him.
Emotions were running high as Thouvenal calculated the scores while Caleb Caldwell and Tyson Long finished at 18:10. Wide-eyed and a little in disbelief, he turned to The Dalles parents huddled on the hillside near the finish line. “I think we won!”
The new Tri-Valley League represented well at State, with Crook County placing third in the boys’ and girls’ races.
The Dalles girls- with their last-minute wild card- placed 8th at 179 points, close behind 6th place Junction City at 174 and 7th Cottage Grove’s 170.
Sophomore Alaina Casady ran an outstanding 20:17 to finish in 7th place behind Molalla’s Anika Jensen, with a 26-second PR for teammate Ruby Jaimes-Mora landing her in 24th place at 21:13.
Consistent times for the seniors at 22:38 for Fiona Dunlop and 23:08 for Lucy Booth helped them finish their high school careers with no regrets, while freshman Rokiah Notbohm finished her first season with her first sub-24 time and a big grin on her face.
With strong and consistent showings for Nayeli Vergara and Abigail Pope, the team finished in high spirits, demonstrating to all that they had earned their wild card place. “I’m not going to lie- I was looking forward to running,” commented alternate Dalila Villegas. “Turns out I’m a little competitive- and I’d love to come back.”
That hunger and dream for future seasons was shared by the younger Riverhawk runners, who not only know what it took to get to State this year, but what it’ll take to return: miles in the offseason, waking up early on Saturdays when they’d rather sleep in, mental toughness, intervals, brownies, and encouragement. In my case, it’s washing off the tarps and getting them ready for storage until the spring, soaked with mud and flush with gratitude.
P.S.
Nearly as important as the State title, the Riverhawks would like to reveal the winners of the pre-meet dinner dress-up contest: by a vote of 59%, the girls team won. They now stand tied 1-1, with the boys’ team victorious last year. Just another reason to go back next year and break it! Check them out below.
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Thank you to everyone who supported us this season- from the Gorge Running club who bought the team hoodies, to the parents who made meals and drove to Saturday runs, to everyone who came and cheered us on this season. We’re glad to have made you proud!
