Cross country is an unappreciated and misunderstood sport.
Every fall, for four years in high school, my friends would ask “Do you have track practice today?”
“No,” I’d respond. “I have cross country practice.”
“Same thing,” they’d say.
But it’s not. It’s not.
Cross country is a team sport. And there are some who struggle to understand that.
A couple of years ago, I had one local administrator, upset that one of her athletes failed to qualify for state, say to me: “Cross country should be more like golf. They should send the top 20 runners to state (instead of the top two teams, plus the next six individuals).”
I replied: “Absolutely not. Cross country is a team sport. You send teams first.”
And the best team in Clark County this fall was the Camas girls cross country team.
The Papermakers have enjoyed a successful run, no pun intended, over the past four years. They won the 3A state title in 2011, scoring 58 points. Then they won the 4A state title in 2012, scoring 50 points.
Remember, low score wins in cross county.
But last year, Camas scored 105 points and placed second to Bellarmine Prep. Then they lost their best runner, the best runner in the state, no, the country when Alexa Efraimson gave up her final year of high school eligibility.
So how to do you replace a runner like Efraimson? Well, with a team.
Of the seven runners the Papermakers sent to state this year, five were freshmen: Emma Jenkins, Emily Wilson, Kaylee Merritt, Brooke Roy and Gabrielle Postma.
Four of those runners placed in the top 27 among team placers. That’s out of 111 runners.
Jenkins was Camas’ top runner, placing fourth in 18 minutes, 5 seconds. To put that in perspective, when Efraimson ran at state as a freshman, she finished third in 17:55.
Camas claimed the 4A team title with 64 points, 27 better than runner-up Issaquah. Their average team time of 18:36 was the best in the state at any classification.
After state, the Papermakers headed to the Nike Cross Regional race in Boise, Idaho, under an assumed name.
Because the high school season officially ends at the state meet, the Papermakers couldn’t compete as Camas High School. So they ran as the club team The Milltown Project.
The Milltown Project, running over a snow-covered course, won a regional title and will advance to the Nike Cross Nationals this Saturday at Glendoveer Golf Course in northeast Portland. The past several years the race had been run at Portland Meadows racetrack.
That will be good news for the runners and spectators who remember the quagmire at Portland Meadows two years ago. It’s bad news for folks who like to park close to the course.
Spectators for this year’s event are instructed to park at the TriMet Park and Ride at 12202 E. Burnside St. and take a free shuttle over to the course. Spectators should arrive 30 minutes prior to race time to allow ample travel time. The girls race begins at 10:05 a.m. Admission is free.
Start of winter
The winter sports season begins in earnest Monday with a dozen boys and girls basketball games, including Columbia River at Camas boys, plus girls-boys doubleheaders of Hudson’s Bay-Heritage and Ridgefield-Mountain View.
All-Region
We received more than 3,000 votes cast in our All-Region girls soccer fan vote.
On Monday, the football vote begins and will continue through the week.
