The course at Mid-Pacific Institute is fun and painful, even for champions.
The Interscholastic League of Honolulu’s cross country runners know that final hill run before the finish quite well. When the league championships are hosted by MPI on Mar. 15, it will be a true test of skill and will. The host school will be in the running, so to speak, against powerhouses Punahou, ‘Iolani and Kamehameha.
COVID-19 protocols will continue to apply. Staggered run times for each school will be scheduled, as they were at MPI’s meet on Saturday.
“Our athletic director put in a proposal and they all accepted it. Originally, we weren’t going to have a championship, and all the ADs accepted. We’ve hosted ILH champs in the past,” Owls Coach Rick Hendrix said. “It’s a little bit tougher say than Kamehameha. ‘Iolani is a flat course. This one is a minute, minute-and-a-half slower.”
There are 31 Owls in cross country from varsity to intermediate this winter. A dozen are on the boys junior varsity squad, seven more on the boys intermediate. The girls are split evenly with six in varsity and six in intermediate.
“I’ve got a couple of girls who would be in my top five runners, but they’re virtual learning so they can’t run,” Hendrix noted.
Saturday’s meet included Sacred Hearts, Kamehameha, Pacific Buddhist Academy and host Mid-Pacific. The ILH is the only league statewide that is hosting cross country meets.
“It’s very fortunate the private schools get to run. The student-athletes appreciate that. We can’t feel sorry for them, but we feel for them. It’s a life lesson for everybody,” Hendrix said.
The course at Mid-Pacific Institute is fun and painful, even for champions.
The Interscholastic League of Honolulu’s cross country runners know that final hill run before the finish quite well. When the league championships are hosted by MPI on Mar. 15, it will be a true test of skill and will. The host school will be in the running, so to speak, against powerhouses Punahou, ‘Iolani and Kamehameha.
COVID-19 protocols will continue to apply. Staggered run times for each school will be scheduled, as they were at MPI’s meet on Saturday.
“Our athletic director put in a proposal and they all accepted it. Originally, we weren’t going to have a championship, and all the ADs accepted. We’ve hosted ILH champs in the past,” Coach Hendrix said. “It’s a little bit tougher say than Kamehameha. ‘Iolani is a flat course. This one is a minute, minute-and-a-half slower.”
There are 31 Owls in cross country from varsity to intermediate this winter. A dozen are on the boys junior varsity squad, seven more on the boys intermediate. The girls are split evenly with six in varsity and six in intermediate.
“I’ve got a couple of girls who would be in my top five runners, but they’re virtual learning so they can’t run,” Hendrix noted.
Saturday’s meet included Sacred Hearts, Kamehameha, Pacific Buddhist Academy and host Mid-Pacific. The ILH is the only league statewide that is hosting cross country meets.
“It’s very fortunate the private schools get to run. The student-athletes appreciate of that. We can’t feel sorry for them, but we feel for them. It’s a life lesson for everybody,” Hendrix said.
Junior Parker Wagnild is the Owls’ top boys harrier.
“He placed 20th at states last year on Maui. This week was the first that he came in second to William Ho (Kamehameha). Parker is a top 10, top five ILH runner. He’s got his work cut out for him,” Hendrix said. “There are gym rats. Parker is a track rat. You can’t keep him down. He runs after practice. You tell him, ‘You’ve got to rest.’ He’s developed quite a bit from his intermediate days. He’s competitive and he wants to improve.”
Wagnild has “three or four” college offers from the mainland, Hendrix added. He posted a time of 11 minutes, 47 seconds at the Sacred Hearts Invitational on Saturday, held at St. Anthony Retreat Center in Kalihi Valley. Ho had the best time of the day at 11:24.
Sophomore Gabe Theriault did not run on Saturday, but in previous events, he has been on Wagnild’s tail.
“He’s 30 seconds or so behind Parker,” Hendrix said.
Another Owl, freshman Nico Perez, may be one of the most determined competitors.
“It’s his first year running, and he’s about a minute behind Parker. He’s really improved and he’s driven. He wants to be Parker II. We call him Wagnild, part two.”
Perez’s older brother, Ryan, ran for Island School (Kauai) and placed second in the state in 2012, Hendrix added.
“Nico wants to win states because his brother didn’t,” he said.
The fastest girl in the program is probably Sophia May, an eighth grader. She posted a time of 14:58 on Saturday.
“She can run varsity and JV because that’s the rules. In this Invitational, she was third overall (among girls). Last year, she ran around a mid-11 minute for two miles,” Hendrix said.
A junior, Sarah Swendsen, actually has a slight edge on May.
“She’s a transfer from California. She’s comparable to Sophia, maybe can beat her by five seconds. Unfortunately, she sprained her ankle two weeks ago, so we kept her out to heal. She’s itching to go,” Hendrix said. “It’s a grade-1 sprain and the trainer had her doing exercises and movements. She was jogging on Thursday and Friday. She’s probably a top 10 or better runner in the ILH.”
The heavy dose of talented intermediate runners across the ILH is unusual. Logan Pang, a seventh grader at ‘Iolani, had the best girls time at a recent meet on the Raiders’ campus at 12 minutes flat.
“She’s exceptional. As a sixth grader, on the same course, she beat Sophia by five seconds. This year, she’s improved her times, beating Sophia by 40 seconds to a minute,” Hendrix said.
There won’t be an intermediate championship for ILH cross country.
“Kamehameha’s ninth grader, Madison (Murata), she would beat Sophia by 5-10 seconds last year, but she has the top time excluding the girl from ‘Iolani,” Hendrix said of Murata, who had a 13:44 at the Sacred Hearts Invitational.
It won’t be easy for teams to simulate MPI’s course, its hill and the likely wet terrain.
“There have been a lot of water puddles downhill,” Hendrix said of MPI’s course. “So you have to watch your path.”
Hendrix expects the firepower of the usual contenders to show up on Mar. 15.
“ ‘Iolani is strong, both boys and girls. Punahou will give them a good run for their money with their numbers, but ‘Iolani has runners coming out of nowhere this year. A lot of them didn’t run last year,” Hendrix said. “We’ll give Kamehameha a good run. In the girls race, ‘Iolani and HBA are the frontrunners with Punahou. Punahou’s got the numbers and that’s their advantage.”
Cross country is one of the few fall or winter sports in the ILH that didn’t get cancelled due to the pandemic. The season is normally in the fall, which means the environment is cooler in this postponed season.
“It’s great to have them out. We’re just fortunate that they get to run, getting aerobics, getting out on the course. They enjoy it and they look forward to practice, which is unusual. They can take their face shields off and just run in their masks or gators,” Hendrix said.
Meanwhile, on the continent, cross country is happening without the necessary hindrance of masks in many states.
“The mainland schools are holding meets without masks at all, and it’s hard to explain to our team,” Hendrix said. “It’s a school policy and we have to do what the administration says.”
Spectators are not permitted on the course during ILH meets.
GO SARAH !! GO OWLS !!
Scamdemic