NIKE PORTLAND XC AT BLUE LAKE REGIONAL PARK HOSTED BY ALOHA HIGH SCHOOL 

- Major Invitational Cross Country Meet to Take Place on 

Saturday, September 24, 2022 - 

BEAVERTON, Oregon (September 19, 2022) – Aloha High School will be hosting the 42nd annual Nike Portland XC Cross Country Meet at Blue Lake Regional Park in Fairview, OR. The Nike Portland XC Cross Country Meet is one of the premier cross country meets on the west coast and teams from across the west coast will be coming to race. 100 teams with over 3,000 athletes will participate at the meet on September 24th. There will be 18 different races including four divisions of boys and girls varsity races. The top varsity race for the boys and girls is the Jim Danner Championship where 25 of the top teams and individual athletes in the region, West Coast, and USA will compete. The course is fast, challenging, and easily viewable for most of the course. 

The Nike Portland XC Meet will begin at 9:00 AM on Saturday, September 24th with the JV frosh soph girls 5,000 meter race. The first varsity race will be the Girls Jim Danner Championship starting at 10:50 AM. Gates will open at 7:30 AM and there is a $5.00 parking fee to enter Blue Lake Regional Park. 

“We anticipate some exciting races this year. We have athletes who have won their state meets in 2021 and have dropped some serious early results in the 2022 season” said Aloha Head Cross Country Coach Stephanie Phillips. “Our course is flat and fast so we expect that there will be a lot of athletes going for fast results. We have teams who expect to challenge for their state championships and this will be a solid, early test for those ambitions.” The Nike Portland Cross Country has produced great battles over the years and plenty of close and exciting finishes. Phillips continued saying, “Last season the Nike Portland Cross Country meet had a substantial impact on the national rankings for individuals and teams. The 2021 Girl’s Jim Danner Championship was won by Kate Peters (Lake Oswego) who finished the season as the No. 6 runner in the country.” Because the Nike Portland Cross Country races is one of the first large meets in the nation, the results will have an impact on the national rankings for the teams and the individuals competing at the meet. 

The entries in the varsity races have not yet been finalized; however, the Jim Danner Championship races for both boys and girls are continuing the tradition of producing something special. The Jim Danner Championship Boys race is wide open for the team championship. Based on early season rankings by DyeStat, Lincoln (Portland, OR) may be the favorite but early season results from California show that teams from Millikan (Long Beach, CA), Poly (Long Beach, CA), Redondo Union (Redondo Beach, CA), Trabuco Hills and South Madera.

PRESS RELEASE 

Contact: Stephanie Phillips, Aloha High School 

Head Cross Country Coach 

(503) 356-2760 / [email protected] 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

(Madera, CA) will be in the hunt for the title. Looking to make a statement among Oregon teams are programs at: Franklin (Portland, OR), West Salem (Salem, OR), and Sunset (Beaverton, OR). 

The pre-meet favorite for the individual crown in the Danner Championship is Jason Parra of Millikan (Long Beach, CA). Jason has a pre-season rank of No. 40 in the nation by DyeStat. However, Jason’s early season results will have him ranked much higher. Zach Munson of Sehome (Bellingham, WA) is ranked No. 18 in the nation by DyeStat. In July Zach traveled to Kenya and ran ran with athletes for an amazing five week adventure. There are at least six other boys who will challenge for the top spot which include Cameron Rhone of Poly (Long Beach, CA) and Aaron Thomas of Redondo Union (Redondo Beach, CA). The Oregon contingent is loaded with top runners in Alexander Garcia-Silver of Marshfield (Coos Bay), Logan Law (Milwaukie), Samy Anderson (Lincoln), William Heslam (Roosevelt), Inbaa Chennai (Sunset) and Jack Meier (West Salem). Expect all these young men to form a lead pack and demonstrate some very hard racing. 

The team race in the Girl’s Jim Danner Championship will be an interesting race between Oregon and California. Three Oregon programs are ranked nationally by DyeStat and those are Summit at No. 30, Franklin at No. 37, and Lincoln at No. 39. However, several strong teams from California who are looking to join the national rankings are Rancho Cucamonga, Redondo Union, and Clovis North. Issaquah (WA), Tahoma (Maple Valley, WA), Skyline (WA), Mountain View (Meridian, ID), and Sunset (Beaverton, OR) are also strong teams looking for a top finish in the field and national rankings. 

2021 Champion Kate Peters (Lake Oswego, OR) is nursing an injury so the Girl’s race for the individual Jim Danner Championship. The pre-meet favorite is sophomore Hanne Thomsen of Montgomery (Santa Rosa, CA) who is currently ranked No. 13 in the nation by DyeStat. Hanne won the California State Meet 3200 last track season as a freshman. Looking to challenge Hanne for the title will be several athletes at or faster than 18:00 for the 5000 Meter. These include: Ana Peters (Lake Oswego), Ella Thorsett and Barrett Justema of Summit (Bend, OR), Jie Yi Denise Chen of Claremont (Claremont, CA), Ashlyn Leath of Clovis North (Clovis, CA), Lyla Fedio of Redondo Union (Redondo Beach, CA), Nicole Alfred of Rancho Cucamonga (Alta Loma, CA), Alexis Leone of Seton Catholic (Vancouver, WA), Katelyn Galloway (Stadium) and Sydney Collier of Skyline (Sammamish, WA). The lead pack will be large and it will be interesting to see who makes the first move and who will go with the pace. Expect a crowd of athletes racing for the finish late in this race. 

The meet will be shown on Runnerspace+PLUS starting at 8:50 in the morning. 

For more information about the Nike Portland XC Cross Country meet, please visit www.NikePortlandXC.runnerspace.com.