KEALIA — Misty rain and sprinkles challenged the field of Kauai Interscholastic Federation cross country runners on Saturday at the Kauai Ranch in Kealia. “The course was slippery and muddy,” said Carolyn Price of Island School, the first girl runner
KEALIA — Misty rain and sprinkles challenged the field of Kauai Interscholastic Federation cross country runners on Saturday at the Kauai Ranch in Kealia.
“The course was slippery and muddy,” said Carolyn Price of Island School, the first girl runner to finish in the morning mist. “But it’s beautiful.”
Despite the first finish, the Kapaa girls beat out Island School by 10 points to clinch the girls race with 33 points.
“The course was trecherous,” said Kelsea Armstrong, who finished first for Kapaa and second overall. “I saw a girl slip and miss a cone, having to back. And there was the hill.”
Island School girls picked up 43 points, just two points ahead of Kauai High School with 45 points. Waimea girls rounded out the field with 111 points.
“This has been a really good season with no one dominating,” said Basil Scott, the KIF timekeeper and scorer. “Any time you have races where different winners emerge, it’s a good race.”
The tight race for the top overflowed onto the boys’ course, where Island School took the Saturday competition with 34 points, just five points ahead of Kauai High School at 39 points.
Kapaa High School finished the day at 48 points followed by the Waimea boys at 111 points.
The rain added to the terrain described by Kapaa Col. Robert Levoit as the Batan March, slowing the runners as Price, the top female runner, crossed the line at 22:59 compared with her 21:35 from last week’s meet.
Dutch Fairbanks, a freshman from Kauai High School, extracted gasps of awe from the rain-soaked galley as he headed for the line, unchallenged in first, stopping the clock at 18:54, down from last week’s fastest time at 17:23.
“In this rain, you lose an inch for every step you take,” Scott said. “You step forward, but slide back an inch. It might not sound like much, but depending on how many steps you take, it adds up.”
That might have been the case, but for second finisher, Micah Nobriga-Ferris of Kapaa, he slipped on the course, “tweaking” his knee, and after catching himself, could not make up the time, letting go an anguished yell and slapping one of the posts at the finish line.
“Dutch was right in front of me when I slipped,” Nobriga-Ferris said. “My knee was acting up and he pulled ahead farther and farther. Heading into the finish, I was on the wrong side of the cones and had to correct. To finish second? Well, I’ll be back next week.”
Top finisher Fairbanks, whom Kauai coach Fred Sasan described as “a swimmer,” peeled off his rain-soaked jersey and relished his first finish.
“I was okay through the first two miles,” Fairbanks said. “Entering the third mile, my legs were tired and I heard Coach Rich (Matsumoto) say, ‘Think Positive!’ Heading up the hill, I was ready to faint, but I gave it everything I had.”
Through the first six boys, Island School, Kauai High and Kapaa High were tied, Kauai pulling ahead when Andrew Herr, seventh overall, crossed at 20:33.
The digit lead was short-lived as Island School clinched the race, when Kyle Riddle (21:09), Tai Mitchell (21:12), and Kyle Leibow (21:31) crossed in eighth, ninth and 10th, overall, respectively.
Kapaa’s third runner, Justin Franklin, crossed on the heels of Leibow in 11th place at 21:38.
On the girls’ course, the Warrior wahine swung the tide in its favor when its third runner, Nevah Arrnda-Kapu, crossed seventh overall at 25:40, getting help from Kauai who pushed freshman Stacie Schnackenberg across in eighth at 25:40.30 followed by Kapaa’s Emily Faretta crossing at 25:59.
The Voyagers’ third runner, Makenna Olson, crossed 10th at 26:12. Kapaa’s Tigerlily Zietz (26:20) locked up the race and pushed Kauai into third place as Kristin Chun (26:26) crossed 12th overall.
The next KIF cross country meet moves to the Island School campus Saturday with the first race starting at 8 a.m.
