| Iolani Invitational Preview - Hawaii 9/21/01 Meet features California Teams!! |
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September 21st, 2002 Iolani Cross-Country Invitational - Hawaii- Preview by Greg Char and Doug Speck
The Iolani Cross Country Invitational has expanded tremendously for the 2002 meet which is set for Saturday, September 21st. The 4th edition will feature sixteen mainland teams from five states and New Zealand competing against Hawaii's best runners from over twenty schools. The races will be held once again at beautiful Kualoa Ranch on the windward side of Oahu. Close to 200 runners are expected to compete in the 5K Varsity races. In addition, Iolani School has joined forces with the University of Hawaii who will have their Big Wave Cross Country Invitational immediately following the high school competition. The college races will feature team many mainland schools headlined by UCLA battling against the Hawaii schools. The girls race is highlighted by Nationally ranked Eisenhower HS from Washington who is ranked 23rd in the country by Harrier Magazine. Eisenhower will receive some stiff competition from Northern California powerhouses Montgomery, Deer Valley, and Gunn, Central California's Clovis East, Oregon's Crescent Valley, and national powerhouse Bingham from Utah. The test for the California teams against Coach Phil English’s Eisenhower group from Yakima, Washington should be interesting. From last year’s Spring Track season Molly Carmody from Eisenhower ran 2:14.48, with Katie Hummell 11:17.33, with both back for Ike. In last year’s State CC Meet in Washington, Hummel was 19:05 - Carmody 19:13 - Julie Baird 19:32 - Mikell Gibbons 19:45 and Christine Whiteside 21:25. Certainly English will be working to close up the gap, with the former Washington State University runner capable of getting a great deal out of his team each year. Montgomery, with some impressive early season depth, including gapping under a minute behind leader Kim Conley on the short Rancho Cotate Invitational course a week back. It will be a challenge to see where the highly regarded Montgomery pack can run along and finish with the traditional Washington power. The individual side of this race features Ruth Graham from Gunn HS. Graham, who just missed the Foot Locker National Finals with her ninth from the region, is considered one of the top 50 runners in the nation by Harrier Magazine and was the Division II State Champion in 2001. Challenging Graham will be Kit Zeigle from Bingham (11:18.66 3200 at State Meet at altitude) and Kim Conley from Montgomery. An interesting note is that the three previous girls team winners will be competing in the 2002 meet - Crescent Valley (1999), Montgomery (2000), and Iolani (2001). In addition, the 1999 individual winner, 1999 Footlocker National Champion Victoria Chang, will be competing in the college race for the University of Hawaii. Also, Hawaii's 2001 State Champion, Crystal Cuadra, will be back to compete in the college division with San Diego State University. The boys division will feature many strong teams including Montgomery, Orange (CA), Auburn Riverside (WA), and Bingham. Bingham has a nice trio returning from its 2001 team, with Montgomery and Orange hoping to put their packs up with the Utah crew. All four squads mentioned above have great depth and strong traditions. A great battle between Carl Moe of Auburn Riverside, Francisco Guerra of Orange, and Ryan Merriman of Bingham will take place for the individual title. Moe had a fine 4:11.89 (1600) and 9:06.82 (3200) double from the state track meet in Washington! The 1999 team winner Punahou (HI) will be competing as will the 2002 winner Montgomery. *Hawaii Teams Over 20 Hawaii schools including the top five girls teams and top three *Mainland teams
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Editor: Doug Speck �2002 by DyeStat |
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