Even without their top runner, the Philomath High girls cross-country team placed five runners among the top nine finishers and cruised to a team title Saturday at the Woahink Lake Cross-Country Invitational near Florence.
The Warriors scored 23 points to finish well ahead of runner-up Cottage Grove at 54. Siuslaw placed third with 86, followed by Marshfield at 90 and Pleasant Hill at 96.
Freshman Olivia Hernandez stepped into the No. 1 spot and led the Warriors with a runner-up finish in 19:28.3. Coquille junior Ella Henthorn won the race in 18:31.0.
Sophomore Sienna Bushnell followed Hernandez across the line in third place at 20:27.0. Sophomore Piper Pedder was sixth in 20:36.0, junior Reagan Nuño placed eighth in 21:00.4 and freshman Sienna Smith rounded out the scoring five with a ninth-place finish in 21:28.9. Junior Libby Kramer added a 12th-place showing in 21:34.0.
Philomath’s scoring five finished within 2 minutes, 1 second of each other.
Philomath’s girls competed without junior Cassidy Smart, who was at a mountain bike race.
In the boys race, Philomath placed fourth with 92 points, five points behind third-place Marshfield. Siuslaw won the team title with 23 points and Cottage Grove was second with 41. Pleasant Hill and Reedsport rounded out the six-team field.
Siuslaw junior Henry Stone won the individual title in 16:00.8.
Freshman Riggins Bushnell paced Philomath with a sixth-place finish in 17:30.3. Freshmen Warren Smart and Braven Beard ran back-to-back in 17th and 18th with times of 18:27.9 and 18:38.0, respectively. Sophomore Cameron Barlow placed 22nd in 18:59.8 and senior Oakley Pausch was 30th in 19:43.9. Sophomore Milo Morrison finished 36th in 20:47.3.
The Warrior boys were also without their top runner as senior Galen Murch was visiting colleges.
Philomath returns to action Thursday at the Grant Robison Invitational at Joe Dancer Park in McMinnville. Varsity races are scheduled for 4:15 p.m. for the girls and 5 p.m. for the boys.
Woahink Lake XC Invitational
Saturday, Sept. 26, at Woahink Lake near Florence
PHS RESULTS
BOYS
TEAM SCORING—1, Siuslaw 23; 2, Cottage Grove 41; 3, Marshfield 87; 4, Philomath 92; 5, Pleasant Hill 111; 6, Reedsport 162.
VARSITY—6, Riggins Bushnell, 17:30.3; 17, Warren Smart, 18:27.9; 18, Braven Beard, 18:38.0; 22, Cameron Barlow, 18:59.8; 30, Oakley Pausch, 19:43.9; 36, Milo Morrison, 20:47.3.
JV—20, Rex Sederlin, 23:29.7; 25, Abisai Navarette, 26:09.8.
GIRLS
TEAM SCORING—1, Philomath 23; 2, Cottage Grove 54; 3, Siuslaw 86; 4, Marshfield 90; 5, Pleasant Hill 96.
VARSITY—2, Olivia Hernandez, 19:28.3; 3, Sienna Bushnell, 20:27.0; 6, Piper Pedder, 20:36.0; 8, Reagan Nuño, 21:00.4; 9, Sienna Smith, 21:28.9; 12, Libby Kramer, 21:34.0.
JV—4, Ava Panico, 24:29.4; 7, Scarlet Panico, 25:55.2; 8, Addie Kowalewski, 25:57.2; 11, Denae Imlach, 26:49.8; 17, Wren Pope, 30:27.7.