By Nov. 8—PASCO — Miro Parr-Coffin wanted to break the 4A state course record Saturday.
After going through the first mile 10 seconds slower than desired, the Gonzaga Prep sophomore settled for the next best thing — a state championship.
With 400 meters to go and a downhill finish at Sun Willows Golf Course, Parr-Coffin surged to victory, winning in a time of 14 minutes, 55.8 seconds.
"Going into the race the course record was in the back of my mind," Parr-Coffin said. "But we went out slow. Having a slow first mile makes it hard to go after the record. After that, it was a tactical race."
Parr-Coffin and Mead junior Stejer Franklin were dead even through two miles. Franklin did all he could to keep up, but he couldn't match Parr-Coffin's closing kick.
Franklin finished second (14:59.0). But the standout Mead runner didn't go home empty-handed, though. Franklin led dominant Mead to a repeat championship. The Panthers finished with 69 points, well ahead of runner-up Skyline (103).
Boys
4A: Parr-Coffin, fifth at state as a freshman, set his sights on a championship before the season began.
From the get go in late August there was measurable maturity and growth in Parr-Coffin. He didn't let off the throttle either.
When Parr-Coffin reached the crest of the downhill finish he found another gear.
"I was like I gotta go," Parr-Coffin said. "And that's what I did. I just started bombing downhill. I went straight to the kick. Pretty successful season. I couldn't ask for any more. Now I want to be a three-time champ."
Franklin wore a frown on his face for a few minutes after the race. He wanted an individual title to go along with the repeat team title.
"I couldn't fully execute today which definitely stinks," Franklin said. "But the team was able to get it done and I left it all out there. I'm happy that we got the win, but I probably should have gone out a little faster."
Senior Aaron Pooler was next for Mead, taking seventh (15:32.6). Sophomore Oliver Holden was 29th (16:03.4) and freshman Owen Loft was 30th (16:03.8).
All seven Mead runners broke 16:39.5.
"It's sweet," Franklin said. "Winning the first one last year was cool and the second time is also really cool. They're both equal in my mind."
Franklin looked ahead to a threepeat.
"We'll bring a lot of guys back next year, but we're trying to be in the moment and take this momentum into NXR," Franklin said.
Pooler was Mead's faithful No. 2 all season.
"It's everything we dreamed about," Pooler said. "I'm so proud of our guys. It's amazing to see the fruits of our labor. This year was the start of a dynasty."
Mead coach Austin Stuchell was proud of how dominant his Panthers were.
"After the first mile there were like 60 points between us and the next team," Stuchell said. "They put a big lead on everybody. They've had targets on their back all year. They know the culture and they buy into it. It's fun to coach guys that are motivated."
Other medal winners were Elijah Tobin and Peder Gauss of Lewis and Clark. Tobin took 15th and Gauss was next at 16th.
3A: Mt. Spokane wanted nothing less than a state title. The Wildcats ran well and had to settle for third.
Mt. Spokane finished with 117 points — 10 behind state champ Gig Harbor and seven behind Bishop Blanchet.
"You got to hand it to the Gig Harbor fifth man," Mt. Spokane coach Scott Daratha said. "He moved up 23 spots in the last mile."
Senior Gatlin Michaelsen was the pacesetter again for the Wildcats, finishing sixth (15:35.0). Shadle Park senior Becks Bird (15:17.9) was fourth and Hermiston junior Leroy Lozano Mejia won (14:45.9).
"Gatlin is the ultimate team guy," Daratha said. "He sacrificed a place or two to work with his teammates and paced us to be in a position to win. The boys executed the plan but just came up a little short."
Michaelsen immediately turned around after finishing to congratulate each teammate as he finished.
"100 percent. They all went all out," Michaelsen said. "I wanted to (meet) them at the finish line. I executed pretty well and so did they."
Michaelsen was the lone Mt. Spokane runner to place in the top 20. Daratha figured the Wildcats needed three or four in the top 20 to win.
Sophomore Grant Summers of Ridgeline (15:36.1) took eighth.
Girls
4A: No Greater Spokane League runner earned a medal. Mead sophomore Claire Philips was 18th (18:45.0).
Issaquah won with 96 points, well ahead of runner-up Mt. Si (143).
Mt. Si senior Sofia Rodriguez completed her career with a fourth state title.
3A: Ridgeline freshman Chloe Lentz and Mt. Spokane senior Frances Rein earned medals.
Lentz took 12th (19:05.6) and Rein took 14th (19:07.4),
Mercer Island won the state title.
Ambulatory: Mt. Spokane senior Brycen Phillips took second in 13:06.4 on the 2.1-mile course — a mile shorter than all other classification finals.
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/gonzaga-preps-miro-parr-coffin-030600630.html
