This weekend is arguably the biggest weekend of cross country in the state! The season is well underway, people are already running fast times, and several athletes and teams are already nationally ranked! All thats left for them to do... get some championship like racing under their belts. That is exactly what this weekend is all about.
This Saturday will feature two of the biggest meets in the state of Oregon, The Northwest Classic at Lane Community College in Eugene, and Nike Portland XC (formerly known as Nike Pre Nationals) at Portland Meadows Golf Course. Not only do both of these meets feature stacked fields, but they both preview two crucial post season courses, the state meet course and the Nike Cross Nationals course. Getting to preview these courses early in the season is always a huge advantage, and could serve as a little preview for whats to come later this season.
The Northwest Classic this year will feature 40 of the top teams from Southern Oregon and the Eugene areas and features some big match ups. Look out for West Salem's Ahmed Muhumed this weekend. We highlighted Muhumed as the top athlete in the state in our Saucony Flo50 video at the beginning of the season. He has already taken victories at The Invitational, where he defeated the No. 2 athlete on our Saucony Flo50 Jackson Mestler, and the Saxon Invite. However, Muhumed is currently ranked fourth in the state for 5K, behind Summit's Alex Martin and Thomas Schoderbek, and Mestler. He will be looking to jump back on top this weekend at Northwest Classic. Also look out for the Sheldon girls squad. They are currently ranked fifth in the state as a team and are looking to take advantage of previewing the state meet course early in the season.
Now we head up North to Nike Portland XC. Even though this meet features a new name, the competition will still be exceptionally high. This year's meet features over 100 of the best teams on the West Coast, including Camas from Washington and Madera South from California. However, the Oregon representation will be a strong one this year, especially on the team side. The boys team to look out for is the Summit squad. According to MileSplit's most recent national team rankings, the Summit team is ranked SECOND in the Nation! Lead by Alex Martin, who is currently ranked 14th in the Nation for 5K, and Thomas Schoderbek close behind, ranked 16th in the Nation, the team looks to make a statement this weekend and prove that their national ranking is legit.
But you know what is better than having one team ranked second in the nation? Having TWO teams that are ranked second in the nation! That's right. On the girls side, the girls of Sunset are also ranked second in MileSplit's national team rankings. These girls have a chip on their shoulders after losing the state meet by one point last year, but that defeated was nothing but fuel for the fire. In an interview with head coach Dan Neeway, he said that his squad "started training for this XC season last November." Its apparent that the work they put in is paying off. Even though this weekend will be a big race for Sunset, they still have their eyes set on that state title. But they are a hungry team, and could be eating come this Saturday.
I am excited to announce that Oregon MileSplit will be covering its FIRST meet live this weekend! I will be out at Nike Portland XC to provide you with photos, interviews, and archived race videos! Shout out to Coach Ken Martinez of Aloha for putting on the meet and inviting us up. Excited to be bringing you all the coverage and taking this big step for the site.