Cross country: Trio of Wolves race to state 2A meet berths

By Sequim Gazette Staff • November 1, 2023 1:30 am
Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Colby Ellefson races to a seventh place finish at the Westside Classic district cross country meet this past weekend. Ellefson qualified for the class 2A state meet for the second time.
Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Colby Ellefson races to a seventh place finish at the Westside Classic district cross country meet this past weekend. Ellefson qualified for the class 2A state meet for the second time.

A pair of Wolves are headed back to state while a third has qualified for the first time.

Sequim High seniors Colby Ellefson and Kaithlyn Bloomenrader and junior Dawn Hulstedt are headed to the class 2A state cross country championship, held Saturday, Nov. 4, at Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco.

Ellefson, who competed at state in 2021 as a sophomore (placing 51st, in 17:26), raced to a seventh place finish at the Westside Classic district meet on Oct. 28 at University Place.

Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Sequim’s Kaitlyn Bloomenrader, left, races to a seventh place finish at the Westside Classic district cross country meet this past weekend. She qualified for the class 2A state meet for the third time.

Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Sequim’s Kaitlyn Bloomenrader, left, races to a seventh place finish at the Westside Classic district cross country meet this past weekend. She qualified for the class 2A state meet for the third time.

Bloomenrader, a two-time state competitor who took 20th overall as a sophomore in 2021 (20:01) and 49th last season as a junior (21:00), also took seventh at the Westside Classic, completing the 5,000-meter course in 20:44.

Hulstedt, in her first season running cross country, placed 34th overall at districts in 22:54 and also earned a state berth.

Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Sequim’s Dawn Hulstedt races to a 34th place finish - and a class 2A state meet berth - at the Westside Classic cross country meet this past weekend.

Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Sequim’s Dawn Hulstedt races to a 34th place finish - and a class 2A state meet berth - at the Westside Classic cross country meet this past weekend.

Sequim’s girls placed eighth as a team and missed qualifying as a team by about 20 points. Liberty Mavy was 49th (23:30), Lilly Despain was 64th (24:43), Birdie Pyeatt was 66th and Aspen Goldner was 67th (both finished in 25:00), and Mia Kirner was 79th (25:56).

Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Sequim’s Birdie Pyeatt races in the Westside Classic district cross country meet last week.

Photo courtesy of Eric Ellefson / Sequim’s Birdie Pyeatt races in the Westside Classic district cross country meet last week.

White River cruised to a win in the girls’ 2A race with 36 points, ahead of Steilacoom (81 points) and Enumclaw (90). Kingston, Olympic and Washington also qualified as teams.

On the boys’ side, Sequim’s boys placed 10th overall. Kingston won the district title with 66 points, followed by Enumclaw, Steilacoom, Franklin Pierce, Olympic and Fife.

SHS freshman Reid Randall placed 46th in (18:06) while senior teammate Cayden Beauregard placed 61st in 18:26. Adrian Osborne was 75th (18:45), Bowen Zhu took 81st (19:06), Malachi Byrne was 95th (19:23) and Solas McGruther placed 115th (20:17).