Peninsula, Gig Harbor stretch out performances at Sunfair Invite

Tides’ Peloquin wins most elite flight, team second

Marques Hunter

of the Gateway

The Gig Harbor and Peninsula high school cross country teams had exceptional performances at the 36th annual Sunfair Invite last weekend at Franklin Park in Yakima.

The race featured 2,700 runners who represented 99 schools from three states, plus British Columbia, in a 3-mile course.

The Gig Harbor boys and girls teams combined to place second with 102 points.

Jesuit captured first with 72 points. Its girls team ran away from the competition, winning five of seven flights.

Peninsula

The Peninsula boys put themselves on the radar after they placed second in 3A competition with 76 points. Bellevue won with 50, putting each of its seven runners in the top 20.

The Seahawks, ranked sixth in the state, made an impression that could carry into the district and state meets. Five of their seven runners placed in the top 10 in their respective flights.

Peninsula senior Keegan Hall turned in the best placement, landing fourth with a personal-best time of 16 minutes, 43 seconds.

Although some of the Peninsula girls were dealing with illnesses or injuries, they finished seventh with 237 points.

Peninsula sophomore Rebecca Paradis placed 23rd (20:07) while enduring tendinitis in her arch, and senior Hannah George (24th, 21:07) was coming off a cold that sidelined her during an SPSL meet last week.

The Glacier Peak girls team dominated the 3A competition with 41 points, placing six of its seven runners in the top six.

Gig Harbor

After they placed second in Class 4A competition, the Gig Harbor girls showed they will be a contender next month. Five of their seven runners placed in the top six to help the team score 41 points.

Jesuit won five of the seven flights and scored 12 points.

Gig Harbor senior Cara Saxon placed second in her flight with a personal-best 19:42.95. It was nearly 10 seconds faster than her seventh-place showing at the Sunfair Invite last year.

Gig Harbor senior Erin Hull placed sixth in her flight in 19:40.88, a 50-second improvement from last year’s performance.

Meanwhile, Gig Harbor senior Conner Peloquin continued to run as one of the top athletes in 4A competition. In the most elite flight, he beat out Auburn Riverside’s Kenny Krotzer to win in 15:24.29.

Peloquin’s time was about a nine-second improvement over last year’s effort at the Sunfair Invite. He helped the Tides finish fifth with 61 points.

The Gig Harbor boys were five points shy of placing third (Kamiakin). Jackson won three of its seven flights and placed second in two more for a winning total of 13 points.