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Archive for the ‘Cross Country’ Category

Lone Wolf runs with the big dogs!!

Posted in Cross Country, tagged , , , , on November 4, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Danny Conlisk poses by the rock in front of the CHS gym before heading out to the state cross country meet. (Dawnelle Conlisk photos)

   Conlisk hangs out in Pasco with South Whidbey training partners Michael Cepowski (left) and Callahan Yale.

Conlisk and his cold, but proud, mom.

He ran for his school.

He ran for his family and friends.

And, ultimately, he ran in a vain bid to get warm.

The first Coupeville High School cross country runner to compete at the 1A state meet since 2010, Wolf junior Danny Conlisk braved the icy weather in Pasco Saturday, finishing 124th in a field of 156 runners.

He covered 5,000 frigid meters at the Sun Willows Golf Course in 18:06.9.

Kenneth Rooks of College Place capped a stellar career with his second title in three years, hitting the tape in 15:18.

Rooks also won a title at the 1B/2B level as a sophomore, then placed fourth in 1A last season.

Coupeville, which boasts two state title winners (Tyler King in 2010 and Natasha Bamberger in 1985) doesn’t have an active harrier program of its own.

Because of that, Conlisk and his fellow Wolf runners — brothers Henry and Sam Wynn — trained and traveled with South Whidbey this year.

Two of Conlisk’s Falcon buddies, Michael Cepowski and Callahan Yale, also made it to state, finishing 46th and 133rd, respectively.

Medical Lake captured the 1A boys team title, while Klahowya, the only Olympic League school to qualify its entire squad, finished 11th out of 16 teams.

On the girls side, South Whidbey placed 10th out of 16 teams during Saturday’s race.

Freshman Kaia Swegler Richmond was the top Falcon, finishing 14th out of 152 runners.

Conlisk, who became a running convert in recent years, is now a three-time state meet vet, having already punched his ticket in track and field as both a freshman and sophomore.

And, in a neat little twist, the number he wore during Saturday’s meet (#212) matches his birthday, Feb. 12.

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Danny Conlisk shocks the world!!

Posted in Cross Country, tagged , , , , on October 28, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Coupeville’s contingent at the district cross country meet included runners (l to r) Sam Wynn, Henry Wynn, Danny Conlisk and #1 fan Abby Parker. (Dawnelle Conlisk photo)

As Danny Conlisk stepped to the start line Saturday, the odds were stacked against him.

He had been very sick earlier in the week.

He wasn’t ranked high enough for those on the outside to view him as a major contender.

No one from Coupeville High School had qualified for the state meet in cross country since 2010.

It mattered not.

Conlisk, the smooth-running, serene king of the trail, outran the doubters, his ranking and the screams of his own personal fan club to finish 7th at the West Central District 3 meet at University Place, punching his ticket to the big dance.

After competing at state in track as both a freshman and sophomore, the Wolf junior became the first CHS harrier since Tyler King to qualify for the biggest cross country race of the year.

To achieve the feat, Conlisk needed to place in the top 14 Saturday. Since he entered ranked #21 in a 48-man field, it seemed like a bit of a long shot.

Never doubt the heart of a champion.

Conlisk took three seconds off his PR, clocking in at 17:45.50 seconds while covering 5,000 meters.

“I am mighty proud of him,” said mom Dawnelle Conlisk. “I think Abby Parker and I were more nervous than he was.

“So fun to watch. He passed us in 7th on the first go-by, and at mile two he was still in 7th. We screamed like girls!! So thankful I booked a room for state a few weeks ago.”

Jared Donnel of Bellevue Christian won the individual title, while Charles Wright Academy took the team crown.

The state meet is Saturday, Nov. 4 at the Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco.

Conlisk will be a lone Wolf at the big meet, as his CHS teammates, Sam and Henry Wynn, didn’t make the cut.

Sam, a freshman, finished 41st in 20:38.50, while Henry, a senior, capped his career by hitting the tape in 45th (21:26.60).

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No Wolf senior left behind!!

Posted in Cross Country, tagged , , , , on October 27, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   CHS cross country runner Henry Wynn got an unexpected “Senior Night” Friday morning. (Photo courtesy Susan Wenzel)

As the end of fall sports approaches, we’re deep into Senior Night festivities.

For one Coupeville High School athlete, though, there was a very realistic chance of going unrecognized.

While Wolf tennis, soccer and volleyball have all had events, and football and cheer hold theirs before tonight’s game against Chimacum, Henry Wynn is a man alone.

CHS doesn’t have an active cross country program of its own.

That means Wynn, younger brother Sam, a freshman, and junior Danny Conlisk train and travel with South Whidbey during the regular season, then break off on their own for the postseason.

After competing as a mini three-man squad at last week’s Olympic League Championships, the trio are scheduled to run Saturday at the district meet.

But, since there is no “real” team and no home meets, Henry Wynn’s senior status was likely to slip by when the school honored its athletes.

That’s when a band of his friends, fellow athletes and fans stepped in and decided to throw their own Senior Night festivities, surprising him at school Friday with a poster, flowers and a ton o’ candy.

The idea of “no Wolf senior left behind” sprang from a CHS track teammate who wanted to make sure Wynn knew “how proud they are of Henry for doing what he wanted and liked to do, even though Coupeville doesn’t have a team for it.”

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The students become the teachers!!

Posted in Cross Country, tagged , , , , , , , , on October 21, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   Oak Harbor grad Adrianna Royal is in her second season as a cross country and track coach at Southern Oregon University. (Dena Royal photo)

   Tyler King, who has the most state track meet medals in Coupeville High school history, has joined the coaching staff at Seattle University. (Photo property of SU Track and Field)

Two of the best runners to spring from Whidbey Island, Tyler King and Adrianna Royal, have finished their days as college standouts.

But that doesn’t mean they’ve left the track and trails too far behind.

King, who won three state titles for Coupeville High School, two in track (1600 and 3200) and one in cross country, finished his prep career with 11 state meet medals, the most in school history.

That attracted the interest of the University of Washington, where he went on to become an NCAA All-American while competing in both sports for the Huskies.

King was the captain of the 2016 U-Dub harriers, who placed 8th at the national meet, and graduated in 2016.

These days, he’s an assistant coach in both sports for Seattle University, having joined the staff of first-year Redhawk coach Kelly Sullivan.

While it might be his debut at SU, the head coach has a distinguished career, giving King an opportunity to learn from a legend.

A longtime track and cross country coach at Oregon State, after stints at Willamette and Auburn, Sullivan owns 24 Coach of the Year awards.

Royal, who competed for Oak Harbor High School and Sacramento State, has a prominent place on the list of “Wolves who could have been.”

After running in Coupeville during her early days, she took her sterling skills off to the bright lights of Oak Town, where she went to state in the 800 and 1600.

Steeplechase was Royal’s prime sport, however, and she twice placed second in the nation at the Junior Olympics.

When college swung around, she joined premier programs at Sacramento State, where she was a vital part of four straight Big Sky Conference outdoor track and field titles.

Royal graduated in 2016 holding the seventh-best 3,000 meter steeplechase time in school history.

As a coach, she’s a year ahead of King, having accepted a position at Southern Oregon University last year, where she’s an assistant distance running and steeplechase coach.

In Royal’s first year, the Raiders men’s cross country squad won the NAIA title. During track season, four of her distance runners hit All-American times, while one captured a title at 5,000 meters.

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Wolves run with the big dogs!!

Posted in Cross Country, tagged , , , , on October 19, 2017| Leave a Comment »

   CHS cross country runners (l to r) Henry Wynn, Sam Wynn and Danny Conlisk hang out Thursday at the Olympic League Championships. (Dawnelle Conlisk photo)

No raindrops on their heads, but plenty of water beneath their feet.

Competing on a soggy course in Sequim Thursday, Coupeville High School’s cross country runners survived and thrived at the Olympic League Championships.

While the Wolf trio couldn’t make a dent in the team standings, not having a full seven-man roster, all three CHS harriers stayed upright and finished the 5,000 meter course at The Cedars at Dungeness Golf Course.

Hitting that finish line was what mattered most, as that qualified Danny Conlisk, Henry Wynn and Sam Wynn for the district meet.

That goes down Oct. 28 at University Place.

While they can’t advance to the state meet as a team, if any of the Wolves finish in the top 14 at districts, they will punch individual tickets for the big dance.

After training and traveling with South Whidbey all season, Coupeville’s trio struck out on their own for the postseason.

The league championship, which pitted them against fellow 1A schools Port Townsend, Klahowya and Chimacum, as well as the conference’s seven 2A schools, was their first stop.

Led by individual champ Lucas Becker, Klahowya held off 2A rivals Sequim and North Kitsap to win the boys title. Port Angeles captured the girls crown.

Conlisk was the fastest Wolf on the afternoon, covering the course in 18 minutes, 8.67 seconds to claim 25th out of 64 runners.

Henry Wynn was 54th in 19:43.10, while Sam Wynn set a PR (20:19.50) to claim 60th.

Sam Wynn’s performance was nearly a minute better than his previous best in a 5,000 meter race, which was 21:15.

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