One of the greatest running seasons in Washington high school history has come and gone. The 2022 season showed us all the hard work and dedication each athlete had put in during the COVID era and the results were nothing but great when it came to competing on the biggest of stages.
Alas, a new era of running begins this fall with another talented group of individuals returning and looking to make more history in hopes of rewriting the record books as they continue Washington's rise to nationwide dominance.
The 2022 cross country season is upon us, so let's run it back again.
Here is your first look at the top 4A runners and teams to watch for on the boy's side.
Isaac Briggs, Rogers (Puyallup)
Call it a breakout junior year if you want, but Rogers' Isaac Briggs was right where he wanted to be last fall after a solid sophomore track season. Briggs dropped almost 90 seconds from his sophomore 5k time to his junior time, clocking a personal best time of 16:01.9. At the 4A state meet, he took 14th overall in his first state appearance, running 16:24.8. This past spring, Briggs was one of the top middle-distance runners in the state with personal best times of 1:53.31 in the 800 and 4:13.58 in the 1,600. He earned two third place finishes at the 4A state track meet in both of those events. Between the cross country and track seasons, you could see there was consistency from Briggs in each of his races, and that consistency will continue to carry him to greater heights this fall.
Evan Bruce, Lewis and Clark
Last year you could argue it was a down year for Spokane runners, but it wasn't until Lewis and Clark's Evan Bruce put together some impressive late-season performances during track that changed the perspective. In two postseason races during the spring, Bruce ran big lifetime best performances in the 1,600 and 3,200, running 4:15.18 at the district meet in the 1,600 and then a 9:09.05 at the state meet in the 3,200 to earn fourth place overall in a deep field. To go with his 3,200 state effort, Bruce was also eighth in the 1,600, running 4:17.77. During the cross country season, Bruce dropped his 5k time by almost a minute from his sophomore season, clocking a time of 15:43.9 and then placed eighth at the state meet leading the LC boys to a ninth-place team finish. One of those blue-collared type runners should be in contention to mix it up for a state championship.
Ethan Pedersen, Eastlake
Since his sophomore year, Eastlake's Ethan Pedersen has been a top-tier level runner in Washington. Now entering his senior season, Pedersen is going to be the guy everyone chases after as he returns with the top overall time and state finish at the 4A level. As a junior, Pedersen came away with a 5k time of 15:11.9, a second off her personal best, and a fifth-place finish at the state meet, leading the Wolves to a fifth-place team finish and one spot away from a team trophy. During a much-improved track season, Pedersen lowered his PRs in the 1,600 and 3,200 down to 4:19.89 and 9:18.34 and came away with a sixth-place finish at the state meet in the 3,200. When Pedersen is in a groove, he's hard to beat. No question he'll be in the hunt for a state championship as an individual.
Brennen Rickey, Issaquah
The 2021 state cross country meet was full of surprises, and Issaquah's Brennen Rickey was a big contributor to the madness. The soon-to-be junior placed an impressive seventh place overall as a sophomore at the 4A state meet, running a time of 16:01.4, which was a second off his personal best 16:00.8 from earlier in the year. Behind his efforts, Rickey led a young Eagles squad to a second-place team finish scoring 126 points to place behind eventual champion Kamiakin. As for the spring, Rickey didn't qualify for the state track meet but managed to produce good times of 4:32.15 in the 1,600 and 9:47.96 in the 3,200. It could be another big fall for Rickey after seeing the success he had last season as an individual, but more importantly his leadership is what could help produce a state championship team at Issaquah.
Jacob Schutt, Inglemoor
Don't let his 45th place finish at last fall's 4A state meet fool you. Inglemoor's Jacob Schutt is a true diamond in the rough type of runner, and he proved that by running a personal best 5k time of 15:57 at an earlier meet. The spring outdoor season is where we saw the most production from Schutt, clocking personal best times of 4:26.55 in the 1,600 and 9:29.30 in the 3,200. He also qualified for the 4A state meet in the 3,200 where he placed 11th overall. Been a few years since the Vikings have had a podium finisher at state with the most recent coming from current Gonzaga runner Cooper Laird finishing in seventh his senior season. Schutt will for sure be in that top 10 mix, maybe even if the top five if things go his way.
Conner Wirth, Emerald Ridge
Confidence carries an athlete a long way to success, and Emerald Ridge's Conner Wirth has been blazing that trail since the start of this last track season. Wirth put together two personal best efforts his junior season, highlighted by a school record run in the 1,600 in 4:18.30 and then came within two second of another school record in the 3,200, running 9:18.73. Ending the year with an appearance at the 4A state meet in both events, Wirth took 14th in the 1,600 and ninth in the 3,200 - two races he probably wishes would have gone a different way. Last fall, Wirth took 11th overall at the 4A state meet and ran personal best 5k time of 15:59. It was a good junior year as a whole, but Wirth knows he has more to prove in his final high school season.
Noah Zahn, Eastlake
Similar to Issaquah's Rickey, Eastlake's Noah Zahn added to the fun that was a crazy state meet last fall with a surprising performance. Zahn, who ran a personal best 5k time of 16:01.9 earlier in the year, was the second runner from Eastlake to crack the podium at the 4A state meet, placing 10th overall and contributing to the Wolves strong team race in a loaded field. Carrying over success to the spring, Zahn then ran two more personal best efforts in the 1,600 and 3,200, running 4:29.85 and 9:30.18, and qualified for state in the 3,200 where he placed 10th overall. Zahn makes a solid No. 2 for an Eastlake group that returns all but one runner from last year's state team.
Teams to Watch for:
Eastlake
- It's an exciting time to be a Wolf entering the 2022 fall season. Six state athletes return for head coach Troy Anderson, highlighted by the two podium finishers in Pedersen and Zahn. With Pedersen in the individual title conversation, and Zahn a potential top 10 finisher, who else needs to step up for Eastlake? There's twins Connor and Justin Hom, two primary middle-distance runners who filled it up on the track this last spring each running faster than 1:57.
Issaquah
- One team that came alive at the end of the year was the Issaquah boys. The Eagles return a trio of star studded talent in Brennen and Connor Rickey and Jonathan Liu, who all finished in the top 40 at the 4A state meet last season. Brennen Rickey did his part in leading the Eagles placing seventh in surprising fashion, but it was Liu (17th) and Brennen's younger brother Connor (36th) coming up big in the end. Both Rickey brothers also had strong spring seasons in the 800 and 1,600 races.
Kamiakin
- What's next for the Braves after losing it's greatest duo ever? Well, reload of course. Isaac Teeples' younger brother Ezra highlights the four-time defending state champs heading into 2022 coming off a 20th place finish in the fall and was the top overall freshman in 4A. Jackson Johnson is another one to watch for as a top 35 finisher as a sophomore. Head coach Matt Rexus always finds ways to bring the best out of his runners, and he's got another young group ready to show the state what they are made of.
Tahoma
- If there's was one team eager to get back into the cross-country season, it's the Tahoma Bears. Not because of what the group did in the fall season, but it's what they did in the spring outdoor season that's got everyone excited. It all starts with Ryan Lewis - the talented senior who had the meet of his life at 4A state, running two personal best efforts to win the 800 state title and finish seventh in the 1,600. Daniel Castelluccio and Cooper Boyle also filled it up in the spring with respectable times in 1,600 and 3,200 races.
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