It was a big day for South Eugene cross country in the 6A Southwest Conference district meet Oct. 29 on the state championship course at Lane Community College.
The Axe girls team completed a rare feat by finishing one through seven, outscoring runner-up North Medford 15-70. Freshman Evangeline Johnson Hess, the granddaughter of coach Jeff Hess, won the district title by more than one minute.
“They're just really an incredible bunch,” Hess said of the girls team. “They've been this super solid training group. They feel like a unit as much as it is possible to in this sport.”
South Eugene junior Yosuke Shibata outdueled Sheldon senior Malachi Schoenherr, the reigning 6A champion and the district winner the last two years, to win the boys race. Shibata, the district runner-up last year, has finished ahead of Schoenherr in two of three meetings this season.
“It was a little bit more strategic than the previous couple races this season, or any that came before in other seasons,” Hess said.
Johnson Hess has made a splash in her debut season, her best time ranking No. 12 in the state and No. 6 in 6A. She clocked 18:51.55 on the 5,000-meter course at district to beat senior teammate Madison Zemper-Prill (19:54.49) for the title.
Hess said Johnson Hess belongs in the same company as past South Eugene standouts such as Sara Tsai (6A champion in 2012), Erin Clark (3,000 champion in 2011 and 2013) and Maddy Elmore (1,500 champion in 2019).
“She's as good as anyone I've coached,” Hess said. “We're going to be real cautious in her development and will continue to be over the years. I think I've learned more since coaching Sara and Maddy. They were certainly the best freshmen that I've coached.”
Hess said that Johnson Hess' training times are about the same as Tsai at the same stage.
“She has the potential to be quite good,” he said. “She has very good tools to work with.”
The 5-foot-5 Johnson Hess, who turned 14 in August, is adjusting to an increase her in training this season.
“Her training in middle school was really mild,” Hess said. “She played soccer and ran 2-4 days a week. She never had a 20-mile week at all in middle school. Her training volume has come up some. It's still really low.”
South Eugene's other finishers at district were sophomore Julianne Bawden (third), senior Alaya Drummond (fourth), senior Frances Blake (fifth), freshman Eleanora Dimemt (sixth) and junior Cora Ludwig (seventh).
In the boys race, Shibata (15:22.49) pulled away in the last 500 meters to beat Schoenherr (15:33.08). In previous head-to-head match-ups this season, Shibata finished two-tenths of a second ahead of Schoenherr at Nike Portland XC on Sept. 26 and Schoenherr was 11 seconds faster than Shibata in the Rose City Championship Invite on Oct. 10.
The district course at Lane was different than the state course in that it ran in the opposite direction. Each of the three one-mile loops had a downhill and uphill section.
“The hills were more of a factor,” Hess said.
Shibata and Schoenherr ran together, with subtle shifts in the lead, until Shibata made a move in the final 500. He added a few seconds to the lead when Schoenherr backed off in the final 150.
It was a much different race than at Rose City, where Shibata went out at a 4:34 pace and labored on the back end, allowing Schoenherr to take command.
“Yosuke's regular strategy is to push hard from the front, but that's not always the best way to win a 5,000-meter race,” Hess said. “He did something that was a little more tactical. Yosuke was really sharp.”
Sherwood flexes
Sherwood's girls also ran the table at district, claiming the top five spots to outscore runner-up McMinnville 15-72 in the 6A Pacific Conference meet Oct. 30 at Joe Dancer Park in McMinnville. It is Sherwood's seventh consecutive district title and first perfect score.
Like South Eugene, the Bowmen were led by a freshman in Nezeya Bugher, who notched her first 5,000-meter win of the season. Bugher's time of 18:23.06 gave her a comfortable win over junior teammate Tyler Thomas (18:44.55), who finished as runner-up for the third year in a row.
With the district title, Bugher followed sisters Senoya and Evylee, Pacific champions in 2022 and 2024, respectively.
Evylee Bugher (18:56.78), a junior, placed third in last week's meet. The Bowmen's other scorers were senior Grace Sappenfield (fourth) and sophomore Lucy Tomb (fifth).
Crusaders dominate
Jesuit's boys team, ranked fifth in the nation by DyeStat, tuned up for its 6A repeat bid by dominating the Metro League district meet Oct. 29 at Tualatin Hills Recreation Center.
The Crusaders held down six of the first seven spots and outscored second-place Sunset 18-54. Senior Kellen Williams, who has the top time in the state this season, won in 14:47.97, beating senior teammate Jackson Welsh (14:54.25).
The Crusaders' other scorers were senior Liam Donnelly (fourth) and sophomores Jack Lavier (fifth) and Brady Lukasiewicz (sixth).
Three-peat
Tigard junior Paul Hretcanu won his third consecutive district title in the Three Rivers League meet Oct. 29 at Clackamas Community College.
Hretcanu (15:23.12) won by three seconds over West Linn junior Leo Brown (15:26.91). Hretcanu is the reigning 6A champion in the 800 meters.
jerryu@osaa.org
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