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Wednesday, October 26, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Eighth-grade boys capture crown
By Charlie Kanzig
Correspondent
Going up against the large
middle schools from Bend
and Redmond is nothing new
for the cross-country runners
from Sisters, but there is an
extra measure of joy when
David beats Goliath.
Sisters placed three run-
ners in the top seven to win
the eighth-grade boys team
championship at the Tuesday,
October 18 middle school
championship meet held at
the Pine Nursery in Bend.
Ethan Hosang led the way
with a brave effort result-
ing in a second-place finish
in 10:16 for the 3,000-meter
course. Hosang, hoping to
take the kick out of his closest
competitor, pushed the pace
through the middle of the
race, but could not hold off
Jacob Knox of High Desert,
who won the race in 10:13.
Will Thorsett and John
Peckham finished sixth
and seventh respectively
at 10:50 to secure the win
for the Outlaws. Operating
procedures regarding scor-
ing in cross-country in the
Central Oregon Middle
School District do not follow
typical rules. Instead of scor-
ing the top five finishers from
each school, the league rules
score the top three. With
just 15 points, Sisters nar-
rowly defeated Pacific Crest
Middle School, which scored
17. Cascade Middle School
placed third in the team scor-
ing with 30 points among
fourteen complete teams.
Connor Martin (11:50)
finished 20th, Simon Rhett
(12:27) placed 27th, Josh
Marion (12:33) 29th, and
Max Springer 30th (12:41)
for the eighth-grade team as
well.
Coach Tiffany Tisdel
remarked about how special
this group has been through-
out this season and through-
out their middle school years,
despite being pitted against
the much larger schools.
“This group of boys has
made a run for the district title
the past two years,” she said.
“They finished second the last
two years to Cascade Middle
School of Bend, but thanks to
gutsy racing by every mem-
ber of the team they got that
championship title.
“Although cross-country
can be an individual focus,
this group knew they had to
PHOTO BY CHARLIE KANZIG
Young Outlaws on the run.
run as a team and push each
other to meet their goal of
winning the championship.
In addition to taking the dis-
trict title, each athlete ran a
personal best on this true 3K
course. Part of what makes
this story so touching is that
these boys do not outwardly
focus on themselves. They are
the first to be on the sidelines
of the other races, cheering
their peers on and recogniz-
ing the performances of other
runners whether the racers are
on their team, another team,
or simply a runner that was
finally able to finish a race
without walking. They have
shown tremendous leadership
at practice and meets — they
are models of sportsmanship,
hard work, enthusiasm, and
fun. As hard as they work and
focus on improving their run-
ning, they are equally able to
laugh at themselves and keep
things light when the team
needs it.”
The eighth-grade girls ran
close to one another as the
team finished in eighth place.
Scorers included Shelby
Larson (13:59), Skylar
Wilkens (14:09), and Pearl
Gregg (14:17). Olivia King
(14:41) and Iris Diez (14:47)
also ran well for the Outlaws
as all five finished within a
minute of one another.
The meet included sixth-
and seventh-grade races as
well. Ella Thorsett led the
way for the sixth-grade girls,
finishing fourth overall in
12:32. Ashlyn Moffat, Ellie
Mayes, Josie Patton and
MacKenzie Smith also raced
for the Outlaws. Bela Chladek
came through as the top sixth-
grader on the boys side with
a time of 13:00, just ahead
of Gus Patton in 13:13. Matt
Riehle and Carson Slaughter
PHOTO PROVIDED
The championship Sisters Middle School cross-country team.
also competed for Sisters.
In the seventh-grade races,
Sophia Chase was the lone
Outlaw finisher in 14:11.
Elijah Johnson and Ashton
King ran 15:36 and 15:37 in
the seventh-grade boys race.
With 28 kids on the mid-
dle school team, the program
is very healthy and well-sup-
ported, according to Tisdel.
Julie Patton served as an
assistant coach, Jeff Larson
prescribed many of the work-
outs, and Deb Riehle volun-
teered frequently, giving both
the seasoned runners and
those with little experience
good support.
“Our aim is to give every
student a chance to improve,
to learn to compete, and to
develop a life-long love of the
sport of running,” said Tisdel.
While she will miss her
special eighth-grade squad,
she is excited about her
returning runners and about
how the eighth-graders will
be contributing to the high
school program in the years
to come.
“The high school team is
going to love these eighth-
grade boys and girls next
year,” she said.
o u r Pe a
Spe a k Y
c e!
Sisters
City Council
Candidate Forum
FREE!
★ Wednesday,
November 2 ★
6 to 7:30 p.m. ★
★ Sisters
Fire Hall,
S. Elm St. ★
★ 301 Take
this
★ to opportunity
★
meet your
and ask
★ candidates
questions before ★
casting your vote.
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
Hosted by
Citizens4Community
Moderated by
Winter Lewis
This is a
Civility Certifi ed Event.
All Sisters Country
residents are invited to
this FREE event. Snacks and
drinks will be provided.
With special thanks to the
City of Sisters & our generous sponsors:
Sno Cap Mini Storage, Sisters Meat
& Smokehouse and Sisters Coffee
— Citizens4Community.com —