Donaghu runs down the course record

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

EUGENE -- Ella Donaghu had paid close attention to the Halloween weather forecasts all week and wondered if Mother Nature might impact her ability to run for the record at the OSAA Cross Country Championships. 

But on Saturday afternoon at Lane Community College, the weather seemed to change by the half hour. When the Class 5A girls race went off the starting line, Donaghu watched Summit's Olivia Brooks run off the line and into the lead. And she heard a first mile of split of 5:30. It was an encouraging sign.

Everything lined up for Donaghu to seize a moment at state meet, and she delivered. The Grant senior not only won the Class 6A title for the third year in a row, she beat the clock and smashed Melissa Lucas' 22-year-old state course record with 17:26. She left no doubt, stripping eight seconds off the record time. 

"I was going to go after it regardless (of weather conditions)," Donaghu said. "It started to hurt a lot on the second berm loop and and I said 'You've come this far, why stop pushing now?'"

Matthew Maton had a moment like this in 2014 when he raced the clock and lowered Galen Rupp's course record by 10 seconds. Maton, a University of Oregon freshman, came to watch and offered Donaghu congratulations after the race.

Saturday, Donaghu had 2015's moment at the state meet while a crowd of people on LCC's berm appreciated a new level of achievement for girls running in Oregon. 

"I went through the mile in 5:28, then 2 miles at 11 (minutes)," Donaghu said. "I was (thinking) 'Pretty even. OK. I feel l good. It's hard, but let's go get it.'"

Saturday was a big day for a wide range of champions across four classifications and eight total races. 

US#5 Sunset put four in the top 10 but was challenged by Jesuit on the way to a second Class 6A girls title in three years. The Apollos scored 45 points. The Crusaders, led by a trio of freshmen, put six in front of Sunset's fifth and scored 54. 

Sunset's superb freshman, Ember Stratton, chased Donaghu back and forth over the LCC campus and ran 17:42 -- tying South Eugene's Sara Tsai for the third-fastest run in state meet history. Overall in the 6A race there were 14 freshman in the top 37 places. 

"My goals was to stay with (Donaghu) as close as I could for the longest that I could," Stratton said. "I lost her a little bit at the end."

The weather turned more sour for the 6A boys race and the lead pack remained clumped together until the final mile. West Salem's Ahmed Muhumed said he gathered strength in knowing that it was setting up to be a kicker's race and he pulled away to win in 15:38 to become the first Salem-area boy to win the title since Darrin Rabb of Sprague in 1989. 

Roman Ollar of West Linn closed strong, too, and finished second in 15:40. 

A very tight team race saw Central Catholic claim its ninth title in 13 years and the eighth title in 11 years under coach Dave Frank. 

This one was special for Frank because his son Jackson, a senior who has been around the team since grade school, made the varsity seven this fall and played a part in Saturday's win as the Rams' fifth scorer.

"Jackson worked hard all summer and without him today we wouldn't have won," Frank said. 

Central Catholic took a roundabout way to its fourth straight win. 

"Our plan was to not be on the radar," Frank said. "Let people think Lincoln's good and Jesuit's good and everyone else. We knew our guys. We didn't run poorly today but we could have run better. I told the team that I thought if everyone runs their best today, I think we're the best team. If everyone runs crappy, I think we're the best team. If we run average and someone runs great, we won't win."

It was a huge day for PIL schools Lincoln and Wilson. Lincoln finished in the top two for the first time since 1956. Wilson won a top-four trophy for the first time since winning it all in 1983. 

The Class 5A boys race was a glorified dual meet between Summit and Crater, who between them put eight in the top 10. Crater's Walter Vail won the 5A race in 15:39. 

Summit, with five guys in the top 10, scored 32 points and won for the fifth straight year. Crater put three in the top five and finished second with 36 points. 

Both Summit and Crater ran a bit better than Central Catholic did. 

Brooks ran 17:46 to win her second straight Class 5A race and led the Storm to an eighth straight team championship. Summit went 1-2-3 up top and scored 23 points. Crosstown rival Mountain View was second with 49. 

In Class 4A, the Siuslaw girls won for the first time since 2010, led by overall winner Celie Mans, a junior, in 18:45. Seaside, under longtime coach Neil Branson, won its first state championship on the boys side, led by individual champion Bradley Rzewnicki, who won in 16:13. 

In the small-school Class 3A/2A/1A races, St. Mary's of Medford ended Union's four-year streak. Senior Marissa Dobry, once a part of Michigan's powerful Birmingham Seaholm program, won the race in 18:39. Fabian Cardenas of Umatilla won his second straight boys title in 15:50 and Union edged Catlin Gabel by four for the team win.