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Crimson Bears boys runners place seventh at state
Craig’s Aulis Nelson wins D3 state title, Wrangell boys D3 runner-up, Sitka boys fifth in D2
By Klas Stolpe
Juneau Independent
The Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé boys cross-country team ran to a seventh-place team finish at the ASAA First National Bank Alaska State Cross-Country Championships on Saturday on Anchorage’s Bartlett High School trails.
“The boys’ team really raced tough,” JDHS co-coach Zack Bursell said. “We had a big class of seniors race out there today and they worked really hard and finished close to each other. I'm so proud of all of these runners and their efforts today. They ran hard and should be celebrated.”
JDHS had a solid start on the flats with senior Erik Thompson, Logan Fellman, Zackeriah Bos and Austin Huang keeping stride with the front pack of East Anchorage senior Katahdin Staples, West Anchorage senior Atlin Frderick and Service senior Jack Leveque. Chugiak added a pack of six runners and Colony, Kodiak and South Anchorage put runners in the mix.
“This meet really meant a lot to us going in,” JDHS’ Thompson said. “For a lot of the seniors this is our last race. We have a couple more guys headed down to the Nike Hole in the Wall race, and I am sure we will see a lot of success there with those guys. But for a lot of us, this is our last race and we were really excited about it. The conditions here turned out pretty well. It is pretty warm, considerably, concerning the morning. It is nice not to get rained on, but a little rain wouldn’t have been bad. It was a little handsy course, a little physical course out there, at least I felt that out today. About halfway through, I had a little issue with my breathing but got that under control towards the end of the race and was able to finish out a sprint and get Logan (Fellman) to pass up a couple more guys. It is safe to say, at least with the seniors, that we were happy with how we did today.”
The JDHS pack fell into the middle of the field over a series of rolling hills.
“This meet had kind of been our mindset that we had a good chance of doing pretty well,” Fellman said. “We had been thinking about it for a long time. We didn’t do poorly. We all came together and ran a great race.”
East’s Staples won the race in 15:34. It was his third straight state cross-country title.
West’s Frederick placed second in 15:56, Service’s Leveque third in 15:57, West senior Arlo Jespersen was fourth in 16:18, Chugiak freshman Bennett Hamm fifth in 16:19, South sophomore Ethan Elliott sixth in 16:20, West junior William McMahan seventh in 16:23, South junior Peter May eighth in 16:26, Colony senior Josiah Herrick ninth in 16:26 and Colony junior Benjamin Aliberti 10th in 16:27.
JDHS’ Thompson and Fellman finished 26th and 27th in 17:13 and 17:14, respectively, and senior Zachariah Bos 30th in 17:19.
“That was a hard course,” Bos said. “But I was very happy with the finish especially. I ended up ahead of Logan and Erik for a little bit, then I ended up back where I was in my third spot near the end. It was not the worst thing ever. I could see my two favorite teammates ever, that I was running with all season, right in front of me and we finished that race together. That meant a whole lot to me. The companionship of this sport is more important than any result or time.”
JDHS senior Angus Andrews placed 54th in 17:58, crossing with junior Carson Kautz 55th in 17:59.
“This meet meant a lot because it was the last big race for our high school,” Andrews said. “I was thinking about that a lot while I was running. It was super special because there was a nice group of us all together and we were running the race together as a team. It felt like we were going strong.”
Added Kautz, “On this course I know there is a lot of hills. I came into this race thinking I am going to do the exact same as last week. I went out a little harder than I should have, but I promised my coaches that I would turn it up in the second half and that is what I did. And it felt good.”
JDHS senior Austin Huang placed 57th in 18:01 and junior Emmett Hightower 69th in 18:23.
“Going into this race, two of my teammates and I were running close together this season,” Huang said. “We were all running similar times so it meant a lot that I got to run with them. They were really pushing me. In the first lap, it was mostly just myself, but then I was running along with Angus for a bit before they overtook me at the end. They were really pushing me the whole time and that meant a lot. This is a hard course.”
Said Hightower, “It was a pretty bad race, but it was really nice to see my teammates, who had been working hard all season do really well in this race. The two kids in front of me, Carson and Angus, both did super good. It was really nice to see them run such good season records.”
Other Southeast finishers included Ketchikan freshman Benjamin Thompson 44th in 17:35 and senior teammate Henry Vail 49th in 17:49, junior Isaac Evison 50th in 17:51, freshman Paul King 56th in 18:01 and senior Blaine Garlick 70th in 18:32.
“It was a great day to have a scoring men’s team,” Ketchikan coach Sean Vail said.
West Anchorage won the team title with 54 points and runner-up Chugiak had 64. South Anchorage scored 72, Colony 96, Kodiak 144, Eagle River 158, JDHS 172, West Valley 202, Wasilla 226, Ketchikan 249 and Lathrop 323.
CRAIG SENIOR AULIS NELSON WINS D3 STATE XC CHAMPIONSHIP
Craig senior Aulis Nelson stormed around the Bartlett High School trails, allowing three runners to lead him off the flats of the state Division III boys race start, and exploded onto the hills to capture the championship race in a time of 16:41. That was more than one minute ahead of runner-up and Southeast foe Wrangell senior Jackson Carney in 17:57.
“I am just really excited,” Nelson said. “I am a two-time state champ now, which is exciting. And I got a pretty good time for this course, which I am really happy about. I am really happy with the team, too. I could tell that they pushed themselves. I am just really glad that everyone was able to come up this year. It was super fun with having them and racing with them.”
On Friday, Craig previewed the course and Nelson — the team’s “Mother Hen” —guided them through all the intricacies of the trails, making sure each knew how to approach each twist, turn and climb.
“I am so proud of them,” Nelson said. “I love them to death. They have grown so much. They care and push themselves, and we have grown as a team so much. I am just so glad that they could come up with me too. What a way to finish.”
Some of his season guiding has included leading practice sessions, providing nutritional advice, staying humble and having fun.
“I have told them about drafting,” Nelson said. “Which they didn’t really know. If you are running with someone you can draft behind them, it gives you a big advantage. Or cutting corners, trying to find the optimal race line helps take off time. Little tips like that. I told them I like pastas, I had a lasagna last night that was amazing. And just keeping them focused on their goals.”
Drafting wasn’t in Nelson’s plan for the state race.
“Nope,” Nelson laughed. “With Erik Thompson (Juneau) in the Ketchikan meet, I was drafting off him. Sometimes when you are with somebody about your speed you do it whenever you can. I like chasing people down more than I like being in the lead.”
Nelson would like to run at the next level. Local interest was shown at the meet by the University of Alaska staff in attendance.
“I want to run in college for sure,” he said. “I have been talking to some coaches from the DII and DIII and some NAIA schools. Just trying to figure out where I want to go and hopefully make a decision. Hopefully next year at this time I will be running for a college somewhere.”
On Saturday, however, Nelson’s thoughts were about his hometown.
“This feels really good,” he said. “Especially being Craig’s only cross-country state champion, I am really proud. To Craig, go Panthers! I love our community. It is in a great spot. I am just really proud of the community and the kids at the school. It is a special place.”
With his state title, Nelson moves into the ASAA top individual point totals for DIII boys with 46 - 1st (’26, ’24) 2nd (’25) 4th (’23). He overtook WRG’s Boomchain Loucks’ 34 - 1st (’23, ’25) 7th (’22). Points are determined after the state tournament of a runner’s senior year and scored as 1st -15, 2nd - 9, 3rd - 8, 4th - 7, 5th - 6, 6th - 5, 7th - 4, 8th - 3, 9th - 2, 10th -1.
Dillingham won the DII team title, as seniors August Reigh finished third with 18:07, Gustav Fonkert fifth with 18:22, junior Wyatt Munster 11th with 18:40 and sophomore Chasen Savo 12th with 18:43 to cement the scoring.
Wrangell placed second with 20, followed by Skagway with 32, Glennallen 46, Unalakleet 59, Cordova 62, Unalaska 67, Craig 67, Chevak 100, Sand Point 112 and Akiachak 141.
“I am very thankful for the opportunity I had to run with these guys today,” Carney said. “Wrangell’s program has really stepped it up in the last five years with coach Mason Villarma. He is awesome and, believe it or not, this year is a building year. We came into this year with no expectations and a lot of hard work and went out there and trained.”
Petersburg sophomore Andi Mihai placed fourth in 18:08, just falling off in the final meters to Dillingham senior August Reigh with 18:07.
“Going into the race my goal was to get top five,” Mihai said. “I just wanted to stick to the familiar faces from my region, and then I jumped in with the Dillingham dude at the end and he passed me, but I tried to hang as close as I could to him. I am really happy with how it ended out. This means a ton. Last year I was running 21, didn’t really have a love for the sport and now I have cut off three minutes from my time and on Bartlett PR’d, it really feels great. I think this means a lot for Petersburg. The girls won and I just wanted to go out there and end the day off on just as good as a note.”
Rounding out the top 10 were: 5th Gustav Fonkert senior DIL 18:22; 6th Logan Rupprecht junior Skagway 18:23.5; 7th Oren Pietila sophomore Napaaqtugmiut 18:23.7; 8th Ryder Ritchie sophomore WRG 18:28; 9th Sheperd Korth junior Glennallen 18:29; 10th Warren Davis junior Tanalian 18:37.
“Andi was our only boy competing today and he snagged fourth place after originally being ranked eighth,” Petersburg coach Kayleigh Lenhard said. “Not only did he run a PR of 18:08, but he ran over 3 minutes faster than his best time last season. This is all attributed to the hard work that he has put in both during and before our season even started. His run today was well-deserved and I am just so proud.”
Ten senior runners graduate from the state top 30 placings.
Other Southeast finishers include:14th Julius Thole junior SKG 18:47; 15th Carter Howell junior WRG 18:50; 19th Yeshey Galindo-George sophomore Haines 18:58; 20th Dane Ames junior SKG 19:03; 21st Luca Tronrud senior SKG 19:06; 34th Zane Coughran junior SKG 19:53; 38th Hayden Fithian sophomore CRG 20:06; 42nd Arthur Aribam junior SKG 20:19; 47th Roanin Durgan junior CRG 20:23; 48th Xzavier Munoz-Torres senior Kake 20:32; 49th Jack Conatser sophomore CRG 20:34; 50th Allen Trimmer sophomore CRG 20:43; 56th Quinton Davies freshman WRG 20:56; 57th Maddox Tracy junior SKG 21:00; 58th Matthew Gardner sophomore CRG 21:03; 64th Lucas Stearns junior WRG 21:26; 67th Alex Trimmer sophomore CRG 21:58.
Wrangell coach Mason Villarma noted that both the Wolves boys and girls teams ran well, but were battling sickness.
“And it was a crisp 32 degrees that morning —a little colder than our southeast kids are used to,” Villarma said. “Even with that, they battled, and both teams walked away second in the state, which is an incredible accomplishment.”
Villarma noted that, “Carney had, without hesitation, the race of the day. A season best. The kid is tough as nails. He is always going to find a way to compete because he simply wants it that badly. I’m really going to miss coaching him…Ryder Ritchie probably had our next-best performance. He got better with every race this season, and somewhere along the way it really started to click. He’s invested in the program, he works hard, and I expect him to be one of our leaders next year. Carter Howell ran a strong race for probably 90% of it before ultimately getting caught by some of the Dillingham boys who helped win the team title. Our boys finished just five points short of a state championship. Second in the state is an amazing accomplishment, and they should be proud of it — but nobody likes being the first team to lose. I hope those five points stick with our returning guys and give them a little extra motivation this offseason. Quinton Davies was our fourth scorer. For a freshman, he gained some tremendous experience this year, and I think we’re just beginning to see what he can do. He’s tough, has some natural ability, and I expect him to become an important scorer for us. Lucas Stearns rounded out our scoring five. He had a rough go at State while battling sickness, but he’s another kid who has continued to grow within the program.”
For Wrangell senior Carney, who gill-netted through the summer until the first week of school, the Southeast work ethic paid off.
“I was out on the fishing boat, jumping rope all year,” Carney said. “I got shin splints from jumping on the boat while it was rocking. It was one of those things where we are just going to put in our time and we are going to give it our all every race. For the last time we came to this course for the preview it was just a blowout, it was horrible, but everybody just stayed positive and we worked. You saw down on the course today, I got the opportunity to take second, which was awesome. I trained hard the last couple weeks. I had to make this happen. It was less about for me and more for my team. I want to give my team the best shot to win. We had some issues with colds and some sickness, but the guys still went out there and gave their all. I couldn’t to be more thankful for what I have gotten out of this opportunity. Oh man, just wait until next year. Wrangell will get double titles, boys and girls.”
Craig coach Tina Steffen said this season would be her last. She is retiring as the school’s athletic director and assistant basketball coach as well.
“I am happy for this season, for Aulis’ senior year,” Steffen said. “Every other year we have been here he has kind of been by himself, the Lone Ranger. His mom (Nicole) came last year and was at regionals, his dad (Mike) this year. So having his teammates step up and be here, and having two teams here means the world to him. It meant the world to me to see that. Also the growth, he set a great example and they put in the work. It is a good way to go out for me. I take care of my parents and I have coached for 27 years and my daughter is graduating so I want to be a mom for a bit.”
She said her favorite memory is difficult.
“Aulis is big on that list,” she said. “But when it comes to watching my kids play, my daughter at state basketball last year was pretty big. When I coached the boys, they were almost there. So sharing those moments with my kids. My daughter ran her at state as a freshman, my son Gabe ran here when he was in high school. We still have basketball and track this year. I said I am like a super senior. This is my farewell tour, too. If I don’t make the clean break I won’t do it because I love the Panthers so much.”
SITKA BOYS BATTLE TO FIFTH PLACE AT D2 STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Sitka Wolves ran with a lot of enthusiasm through the Division II championships, but ultimately placed fifth in the team scoring.
“Very proud of our boys,” Sitka coach Shasta Smith said. “Derek (Wilson) ran incredibly well. A very great final run as a high school student. Silas Marley ran incredibly well also.”
Homer earned the team title by one point, 54-55, over Grace Christian, with Mountain City Christian Academy getting third with 56. Bethel had 90, Sitka 107, Kenai 144, Hutchison 212 and Valdez 230.
MCCA junior Breyden Nottingham won the race in 16:20 — his second title in a row — with Sitka senior Derek Wilson putting his last effort as a Wolves cross-country runner to a 10th place finish in 17:28.
“It really meant a lot to me,” Wilson said. “I remember first day of practice this year I told my teammates I am getting 10th or lower, and I did and my family was there finally to watch me.”
Bethel junior Cole Iverson placed second in 16:44, Homer sophomore Elijah Williams third in 16:53, Seward junior Luke Elhard fourth in 16:54, MCCA sophomore Jadon Stanley sixth in 17:00, GC senior Grant Eldridge seventh in 17:14, Monroe senior Myles Werle eighth in 17:22.1 and GC senior Ryan Annett ninth in 17:22.2.
He sprinted to the finish just ahead of Homer sophomore Rio Waltenbaugh, who hit 17:29.
“I mostly just stayed behind this Homer kid until the last 800 out and just kicked past him and did not let him pass again,” Wilson said. “I think advice my Sitka teammates can take away from me is to just always be happy and have a good attitude going into the races.”
Eight seniors graduate from the top 30 finishers, all from the top 14 placings.
• Contact Klas Stolpe at sports@juneauindependent.com
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