2004 HHSAA State Cross Country Meet
The ILH champion Iolani boys, running without injured number two man, Kon Weber, still managed to capture third place in the 2004 State Cross Country meet held at Hawaii Prep Academy on the Big Island this past Friday.
Led by a sixth place finish by junior, Morgan Stephenson, the Raiders ran the hilly course through the vog filled air with an effort befitting the "One-Team" spirit.
Other finishers in the 150 man field for the Raiders included senior Antonio Baclig in 21st, junior Jonathan Goto in 26th, senior Ryan Harada in 43rd, senior Matthew Imada in 71st, senior Thomas Raymond in 88th and junior Ryan Chun in 124th.
The ILH Champion Iolani girls reversed positions with Kamehameha and ended up in second place at the 2004 State Cross Country Meet. Senior Nicole Anderson finished her illustrious career as State runner-up. She was followed in fifth place by senior Joleen Oshiro, junior Megan Chock in 26th, junior Nicole Leong in 45th, junior Susan Mukai in 47th, ninth grader Amy Ishioka in 50th and senior Kira Tamashiro in 69th.
The Baclig Report
11/15/04
Boys Cross-Country States: The Runner’s Story
On Thursday morning, full of plans, dreams, doubts, anxiety and adrenaline,
the Iolani boy’s States team boarded an airplane for the Big Island and
their final race of the season. We were nine: myself, seniors Ryan Harada,
Matt Imada and Tommy Raymond, juniors Jon Goto, and Morgan Stephenson,
sophomore Kon Weber, and alternates juniors Ryan Chun and Cameron Van Der
Kamp.
Our confidence together was unbreakable, but small questions gnawed at our
hopes when we were alone: with such a small margin of victory at ILH
champs, would we be beaten by a renewed effort from Punahou or Kamehameha?
Would the Big Island be stormy, windy and cold? Would HPA’s grand hill
prove too steep? How would we race with all the illnesses we faced?
Underlying all of these was the big question that had motivated all of the
veterans throughout the season and was now about to be answered: could this
team repeat the unprecedented success of last year’s team and win the State
Championship?
On Thursday afternoon we traveled to HPA’s campus to inspect the course and
jog a light warm-up. After the first lap of the course the unthinkable, the
tragic but utterly unpreventable, the apex of all of the adversity our team
had faced throughout the season, happened: our second runner, Kon, twisted
his ankle.
Initially the injury seemed minor, and Kon promised to run the next day.
The remaining runners finished examining the course, the most notable
aspect of which was the long hill the course ascended twice. At first
glance the slope appeared massive, but we soon convinced ourselves that,
like all of the other hills we had climbed, it could be conquered.
When we returned to the hotel we heard the fateful news: Kon could barely
walk, and Ryan Chun would take his place in the race. An objective
bystander would have placed the odds now firmly against us; our team would
have ignored him. I was quite amazed by the resolve that settled on the
other runners and myself. If we each ran our best races the next day, we
told ourselves, we could win; together, in the “One Team” spirit so common
at Iolani but rarely in my experience so intense, we were unstoppable.
The next day was not stormy, less windy than the day before, and, at 9:45,
relatively warm. The hill made the course grueling, and the competition was
unforgiving. With a number of parents and coaches, and five bodypainted
teammates cheering us on, we gave it our all. Morgan capped an outstanding
season with an excellent performance, placing 6th. I placed 21st in perhaps
the hardest race I have ever run. Jon continued to peak, finishing in an
incredible 26th place despite being a JV runner just the week before. Ryan
Harada raced well despite his cold, pushing through his respiratory
problems to finish 43rd. Matt finished a season of strong improvement in
71st place. Tommy, so close to the heart of the team but still impeded by
his cold, finished in 88th. Ryan Chun, full of willpower but still
suffering from a back injury, placed 124th.
At the awards ceremony, we runners, completely exhausted but content with
our effort, knew that we had not won. Kamehameha took the title with only
73 points. We placed 3rd, however, a great accomplishment in itself,
considering we were missing one of our star runners. There is no use now in
thinking about what could have been; what happened was inspiring enough.
Our team faced trial after trial, and did not lose hope. I cannot express
my pride at being a member of such a persevering team.
Antonio Baclig
Coach Char Tells About the Girls
It was a beautiful day for racing at the Hawaii Preparatory Academy site of the 2004 H.H.S.A.A. State Meet Cross Country Championships. There was no rain, wind, or cold weather which frequently occurs on that part of the Big Island. With the weather conditions not a factor, the race to be the State's best would come down to which team and individual could put it all together on one glorious day.
With over 170 runners the race started out fast as expected. The huge, wide open grass field helped to create a clean, fair start. Nicole A. got out hard and ran close to HBA’s Lauren Ho. As expected the two HPA girls were right behind Nicole, and as planned Joleen was close to the HPA girls.
Megan and Susan were among a huge pack while Nicole L., Amy, and Kira were in their own large pack.
The first half mile was flat and on grass, and doubled back to the starting line before crossing the field again and heading up a long hill. The runners began to thin out, and after the first ten runners or so there was just a stream of runners marching along. The places remained the same as they headed up the hill. Nicole A. was still close to Ho while running a fantastic race. Joleen was also racing great staying right behind the two HPA girls. Megan and Susan joined a pack that had separated from the masses which included four Kamehameha girls.
The rest of the team was just a bit back with the rest of the Kamehameha team. Everyone looked strong as they went up the hill, but as they neared the top things, began to change as many runners began to tire including our own. Nicole A. and Joleen held their ground to the top of the hill, but as they made their way through a narrow forest of trees Ho began to pull away from Nicole while Joleen held on. Ho ran a huge downhill to pull further away from Nicole while Joleen and another HPA girl were pulling away from the second HPA girl.
Meanwhile, back in the pack, Megan stayed with the group while Susan began to labor at the top of the hill. By the time they got to the top Susan was a ways back and gave up more ground than she would be able to make up.
Megan looked strong and was running gamely. Nicole L., Amy and Kira also held their positions and looked good. As they finished the down hills and approached the finish area for one last half mile flat loop, things had changed dramatically.
Nicole A. had fallen quite far behind Ho, but was ahead of Joleen and the HPA girl who was battling for third. Megan lost a few places and look tired. Amy and Nicole L. had caught and passed Susan who was running just behind them with Kira a little further back. Three Kamehameha girls were in front of Megan, while the rest had begun to pull away from the rest of our girls.
The last half mile saw few changes. Nicole A. came in second with possibly her best race of the season. Joleen got out kicked by a Seabury Hall girl at the finish, but ran a fantastic race for fifth. Megan continued to tire and got passed by a few runners in the last 200m, including a fourth Kamehameha girl and ended up in 26th.
The rest of the girls pretty much held their places give or take a few, but they could not catch the Kamehameha girls. There was no doubt that we would not win our fourth consecutive title, but the question was: could we hang on for second.
As they announced the team scores, we felt a range of emotions: sadness and frustration for not winning, but anxiety about possibly not even coming in second. When they announced Iolani as second there was joy. The girls had given their best effort for the day, and had made a fine showing. Kamehameha ran well and deserved to win. The Iolani girls will be back next year with hunger and fire intent on reclaiming the State crown.
Coach Greg Char
Complete results can be found at www.timersplus.com
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