Jesuit Leads Tight Pack Of Top Teams In The Northwest

By Paul Schmitz for DyeStat

Boys NXR Northwest Preview

No region is tighter at the top than the Northwest. Four teams, Kamiakin WA, Jesuit OR, Lewis and Clark OR and Tahoma WA are separated by razor-thin margins and all have an NXR title as a realistic preseason goal.

The pick out of the pack is Jesuit OR. The second-place finisher in Oregon 6A in 2018 returns six of seven and is coming off the strongest track season in the region. Close behind the Crusaders is the defending NXR Northwest champions, Kamiakin. All four of these teams project incredibly close and will likely leapfrog and interchange throughout the season.

Teams from Washington have won the past two NXR Northwest titles and all five of the NXN bids have come from the state during that time. However, no other state loses less top runners than the state of Oregon from its top teams.

All of the top seven teams in 6A Oregon return at least five of their top seven runners and 5A champion, Crater, returns six of seven. Washington still secures four of the region's top five spots and had teams finish 1-4 in the NXR Northwest last year, but the gap is between the two top states in the region is closing. 

Elsewhere in the region, Rocky Mountain is the defending champion in 5A Idaho and had a great race at NXR Northwest, finishing fifth. With only one runner in the top five returning, it is unlikely to come close to a repeat performance in 2019. Third-place state finisher Madison returns six of seven and is the team to beat in Idaho. The pick in Wyoming is Star Valley, which seeks to dethrone Jackson Hole after finishing second in 2018. 

1. Jesuit OR. The team from Jesuit has a chance to earn another trip to NXN after a 10-year drought for the school. Jesuit tied for the Oregon 6A title in 2018 with Central Catholic and lost the tie-breaker. Both teams return six of seven, but Jesuit gets the spotlight due to huge improvements on the track this spring. With only two seniors projected in the top seven, the Crusaders could move up the national rankings with continued improvement by juniors Jack Bennett and Ryan Schumacher and senior Declan O’Scanlan.

2. Kamiakin WA. In 2018, Kamiakin took home the NXR title and earned a third NXN bid. The Braves finished 15th at NXN in 2018 and 17th in 2017. This fall projects to be a similar finish if an NXN bid is secured in the tight Northwest. They are led by senior Stanford Smith and talented sophomore Issac Teeples. They graduated the top two, but have the depth to repeat.  

3. Lewis and Clark WA. Lewis and Clark is in a virtual tie with Kamiakin for Washington supremacy in preseason projections. The depth of Kamiakin gives it the edge for now, but Lewis and Clark might have a higher ceiling as a team in 2019. This is because of potential low stick Wil Smith, who is the top runner (with some separation) from the ranked returning teams in the region, and Lewis and Clark could move up nicely with improvements at the four and five spots. The 4A Washington fourth-place finisher surprised at NXR Northwest with a third-place finish and earned an at-large bid. This team saved the best for last and took home a top-10 finish at NXN. This end of the season run is indicative of the parity and the strength of the Northwest. The Tigers finished fourth in their class at the state meet and ended up 10th in the nation just a few weeks later. Expect the unexpected again in 2019 in the Northwest.  

4. Tahoma WA. This ranking could be motivational “bulletin board” material for Tahoma. This team won the 4A Washington state title in 2018 and returns four of five and six of seven. Using their state meet performance alone, this is the top returning team in the region. However, the Thunderbirds pack was swallowed up in the massive field in the NXR race and they finished a disappointing eighth. Led by Ethan Martin and Brian Martinez, Tahoma is one of the four ranked regional teams where winning an NXR title is a very realistic team goal.     

5. Camas WA. There is separation between the top four in the region and the rest of the field. There is another tight pack of teams around No. 5, including Camas WA, Central Catholic OR, Olympia WA, Franklin OR and others. Based on a quality lead runner in Sam Geiger and a solid No. 2 and No. 3 in Spencer Twyman and Luc Utheza, the Papermakers get the nod for now, but will need to close the gap in back to hold off the rest of the field.   

Watchlist 

Central Catholic OR 

Olympia WA

Franklin OR 

Henry M Jackson WA 

Arlington WA

Bishop Blanchet WA

Bozeman MT

Madison ID

Preston ID 

Idaho Falls ID

Star Valley WY