by Tommy Wells
Landon Smith and the Bethel Regional High School Warriors made their presence felt this past weekend at the Class 1A-2A-3A State Cross Country Championships in Anchorage. The Bethel boys had all five scoring runners finish in the top 75 and raced to seventh in the team standings.
As a team, Bethel scored 210 points in the meet, which was held on the cross-country trails behind Bartlett High School. The Warriors finished just six points behind Haines for seventh overall. Grace Christian won the state team crown, edging out Sitka and Homer.
Smith highlighted Warriors’ efforts in the 5-kilometer race. He turned in the team’s fastest time, finishing 47th with a time of 18 minutes, 36 seconds.
Anchorage Christian’s Tristian Merchant won the boys’ race with a blazing time of 15:56. Grace Christian’s Gabe Martin and Luke Fritzel finished second and third, respectively. En route to winning their first state title in three years, Grace Christian had four runners place in the top 15.
Jamin Crow and Thomas Phelan also turned in solid performances for Bethel. Crow raced his way to 55th in the boys’ standings with a time of 18:53. Phelan was 57th, finishing one second behind Crow at 18:54.
Gary Poe and Lawrence Poe rounded out the Warriors’ scoring runners. Poe legged out a time of 19:06 and crossed the finish line in 62nd-place. Lawrence Poe was 75th at 19:35.
Peter Crow and Samuel Beans-Polk also raced for the BRHS squad. Crow was 91st overall with a time of 20 minutes. Beans-Polk was 127th at 21:49.
Sigurd Napoka turned in the top run by Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta small-school runners. The Tuluksak standout sprinted to 64th in the varsity boys’ race. He finished the race with a time of 19:17.
Kwethluk’s Jacob Clark also turned in an outstanding performance in a race that featured more than 140 runners from throughout the state. Clark finished 71st with a time of 19:24.
Kipnuk’s Walter John, and Akiachak’s Tyler Chingliak led a bevy of Y-K runners in the 90s-range. John raced his way to 92nd with a time of 20:04. He edged Chingliak at the finish line with a lean. Chingliak also finished at 20:04. Chevak’s Edward Atcherian placed 94th at 20:10, while Quinhagak’s Chris Alexie and Akula’s Eric Tinker took 96th and 97th, respectively. Alexie and Tinker both clocked marks of 20:14. Kongiganak’s Sean Lupie was 98th at 20:19.
Chevak also garnered a solid showing from Leonardo Mendola and Seth Usugan. Mendola raced to 108th with a time of 20:40, while Usugan finished 140th at 22:49.
Scammon Bay’s Tom Tunutmoak and Xavier Smith paced the Eagles’ efforts. Tunutmoak placed 105th with a time of 20:33, while Smith was 121st at 21:35.
Kalskag’s Robert Wise was 124th at 21:41.
ASAA/First National Bank Alaska Cross Country State Championships
Division II Boys
Team scores — 1. Grace Christian, 46; 2. Sitka, 58; 3. Homer, 80; 4. Anchorage Christian, 99; 5. Kenai Central, 107; 6. Haines, 203; 7. Bethel, 210; 8. Monroe Catholic, 217; 9. Petersburg, 223; 10. Galena, 223; 11. Kotzebue, 306; 12. Cordova, 364.
Individual Results
1. Tristian Merchant, ACS 15:56; 2. Gabe Martin, Grace Christian 16:33; 3. Luke Fritzel, Grace Christian 16:37; 4. Skyler McIntyre, Sitka 16:41; 5. Dominic Baciocco, Sitka 16:44; 6. Maison Dunham, Kenai Central 16:46; 7. Luciano Fasulo, Homer 16:46; 8. Eyoab Knapp, Homer 16:55; 9. Lucas Echenique, Galena 17:04; 10. Joe Pate, Sitka 17:07; 11. Seth Kniegge, Grace Christian 17:09; 12. William Parks, ACS 17:16; 13. Amos Sage, Noatak 17:16; 14. Coleson Voran, Port Alsworth 17:21; 15. Paul Kopp, Grace Christian 17:24; 16. Bill Rich, Homer 17:27; 17. Max Pfeiffenberger, Seward 17:27; 18. Siyel George, Haines 17:35; 19. Tabor Buxton, Sitka 17:39; 20. Preston Wethington, Grace Christian 17:44; 21. Danny Brady, Skagway 17:45; 22. Joe Hamilton, Kenai Central 17:47; 23. Neil Lindquist, Seward 17:47; 24. Vincent Coverdell, Grace Christian 17:57; 25. Tucker Mueller, Kenai Central 17:58; 26. Daniel Reutov, Homer 18:00; 27. Kaleb Smith, ACS 18:01; 28. Kobi Wieland, Sitka 18:04; 29. Tolin Eddy, Petersburg 18:07; 30. Warren Metzger, Grace Christian 18:09; 31. Landon Nicholson, Monroe Catholic 18:11; 32. Joshua Davis, ACS 18:12; 33. Bryce Knudsen, Kake 18:13; 34. Derek Bartlett, Sitka 18:13; 35. Kirby Faverty, Haines 18:13; 36. Corbin Mattingly, Homer 18:19; 37. Kalin Woods, Valdez 18:20; 38. Andrew Stringfellow, Nenana 18:21; 39. Trevor McGee, Port Alsworth 18:23; 40. Tobin Hobbs, Nome-Beltz 18:24; 41. Justin Trail, Nikolaevsk 18:26; 42. Samuel Roberts, Kenai Central 18:29; 43. Evan Stockton, Kenai Central 18:30; 44. Preston Silas, Hutchison 18:31; 45. Dayton Hoblet, Mt Edgecumbe 18:32; 46. Gabriel Silas, Monroe Catholic 18:35; 47. Landon Smith, Bethel 18:36; 48. Wyatt Belisle, Skagway 18:39; 49. Rafael Alfaro, Valdez 18:47; 50. Kaleb Hill, Bristol Bay 18:48; 51. Luke Cross, Kenai Central 18:49; 52. Hahlen Behnken Barkhau, Sitka 18:50; 53. Caleb O’Hara, ACS 18:52; 54. Brennan Skeek, Petersburg 18:52; 55. Jamin Crow, Bethel 18:53; 56. Ocean Matley, Kenai Central 18:54; 57. Thomas Phelan, Bethel 18:54; 58. Ben Cross, Nome-Beltz 18:59; 59. Mac Kesey, Hutchison 19:03; 60. Nathaniel Walsh, Monroe Catholic 19:03; 61. David Miller, Nome-Beltz 19:03; 62. Gary Poe, Bethel 19:06; 63. Daniel Kopp, Galena 19:13; 64. Sigurd Napoka, Tuluksak 19:17; 65. Tobias Robinson, ACS 19:18; 66. Mark Davis, Haines 19:18; 67. Carson Crager, Haines 19:18; 68. Aiden Ivanoff, Kotzebue 19:23; 69. Clayton Beachy, Homer 19:23; 70. Dimitri Hosseth, Dillingham 19:24; 71. Jacob Clark, Kwethluk 19:24; 72. Chase Lister, Petersburg 19:28; 73. Austin Cline, Homer 19:29; 74. Paul Huntington, Galena 19:34; 75. Lawrence Poe, Bethel 19:35; 76. Steven Emerson, Monroe Catholic 19:35; 77. Benjamin Sampson, Noorvik 19:36; 78. Kole Sperl, Petersburg 19:42; 79. Koren Sperl, Petersburg 19:46; 80. John Riddle, Galena 19:46; 81. Graydon Severian, King Cove 19:48; 82. Gage Frohnapfel, Cordova 19:49; 83. Dohyun Jus Kim, Kotzebue 19:49; 84. Trevor Wilson, Unalaska 19:52; 85. Michael Hensley, Kotzebue 19:53; 86. Zach Lucas, Ben Eielson 19:54; 87. Michael Trail, Nikolaevsk 19:55; 88. Deston Bifelt, Galena 19:55; 89. Kip Angaiak, Monroe Catholic 19:55; 90. Uriah Lucas, Petersburg 19:56; 91. Peter Crow, Bethel 20:00; 92. Walter John, Kipnuk 20:04; 93. Tyler Chingliak, Akiachak 20:04; 94. Edward Atcherian, Chevak 20:10; 95. Zeb Khan, Ben Eielson 20:14; 96. Chris Alexie, Quinhagak 20:14; 97. Eric Tinker, Akula 20:14; 98. Sean Lupie, Kongiganak 20:19; 99. Isiah Mongoyak, Barrow 20:21; 100. Alvin Werneke, Kotzebue 20:21; 101. Esau Weyioanna, Barrow 20:24; 102. Patrick Cunningham, Haines 20:25; 103. Joseph Riddle, Galena 20:31; 104. Caleb Hinson, Haines 20:32; 105. Tom Tununtmoak, Scammon Bay 20:33; 106. Austin Lane, Point Lay Kali 20:34; 107. Edward Kokeok, Shishmaref 20:38; 108. Leonardo Mendola, Chevak 20:40; 109. Keegan St. Amand, Glennallen 20:50; 110. Alvin Washington, Galena 20:54; 111. Micah Mitchell, Noatak 20:55; 112. Kamron Rexford, Barrow 20:56; 113. Stephen Thompson, Barrow 20:57; 114. Dorian Wallace, Effie Kokrine 21:03; 115. Brian Aichele, King Cove 21:06; 116. Kane Hoffman, Noorvik 21:08; 117. Christopher Mayer, Monroe Catholic 21:10; 118. Damien Gust, New Stuyahok 21:10; 119. Austin Clarkson, Monroe Catholic 21:12; 120. William Deaton, Cordova 21:18; 121. Xavier Smith, Scammon Bay 21:35; 122. Julian Cumps, Petersburg 21:35; 123. Josh Morry, Anaktuvuk Pass 21:39; 124. Robert Wise, Kalskag 21:41; 125. Zach Kolbe, Dillingham 21:43; 126. John Miner, Kotzebue 21:44; 127. Samuel Beans-Polk, Bethel 21:49; 128. Eli Willimson, Haines 21:51; 129. Jacob Brouillette, Elim 21:53; 130. Dillon Chaney, Dillingham 21:58; 131. Eli Moonin, Port Graham 21:59; 132. Chase Nay, Anaktuvuk Pass 21:59; 133. Cody Shaw, Cordova 22:09; 134. Hayden Williams, Cordova 22:10; 135. Braydyn Brandell, King Cove 22:14; 136. Gage Crawford, Cordova 22:14; 137. Jaqai Kinsman, Cordova 22:16; 138. Christian Spring, Glennallen 22:20; 139. Jevon Annogiyuk, Savoonga 22:24; 140. Seth Usagan, Chevak 22:49; 141. Phillip Christopher, New Stuyahok 23:33; 142. Micah Tedrick, ACS 23:45; 143. Eoghan Hernandez, Cordova 24:29.
