Ida B. Wells girls relay team one to watch at state after Guardians foursome debuts with distance medley win at Jesuit Twilight Relays

Josie Fale, Nina Loewer, Petra Schuster and Charlotte Richman could challenge Jesuit, Oregon City and Lake Oswego for top honors at the 6A championships.

By René Ferrán  

Charlotte Richman was excited to see what she and her teammates on the Ida B. Wells distance medley team could do Friday night at the Jesuit Twilight Relays.

Junior Petra Schuster was finally back in the lineup after missing the entire spring rehabbing from an injury suffered during the cross country season. 

Schuster ran the 800-meter leg of the race, handing the baton to Richman for the final 1,600 meters. 

Richman got the baton facing a 20-meters gap behind Tahoma’s Sara Sanders, who earlier in the day won the 3,000 title. But the Guardians senior and soon-to-be U.S. Military Academy cadet was not to be denied, closing the gap to a half-second halfway through the leg, tucking onto Sanders’ shoulder at the bell and pulling away for a half-second victory in 12 minutes, 13.58 seconds.

“The first two laps, I was just working to catch up to her,” said Richman, who finished fourth in the Elite Mile. “I caught her at about the 800 mark, then the last lap, we were together at the 100 mark, and I just sprinted as fast as I could.”

Friday’s race was the debut for Josie Fale, Nina Loewer, Schuster and Richman as a team, but they could soon form a quartet that could battle Jesuit, Oregon City and Lake Oswego for top honors in three weeks at the Class 6A state meet.

“This was just to see what we could get, just run as fast as we could and focus on our time,” Richman said.

The boys distance medley came down to a three-team battle between the host Crusaders, Mountain View of Bend and Rogers of Puyallup. Rams anchor Isaac Briggs erased a 4-second deficit over the final two laps, then held off Mountain View’s Chase Schermer to win in 10:47.16. 

Girls Distance Medley Podium

1, Ida. B. Wells (Josie Fale, Nina Loewer, Petra Schuster, Charlotte Richman), 12:13.58.

2, Tahoma (Faith Martinez, Julia Stuard, Theresa Barnhart, Sara Sanders), 12:14.19.

3, Jesuit (Maura O'Scannlain, Liliana Hudnut, Natalie Jack, Audrey O'Neill), 12:33.13.

4, Roosevelt (Mira Danish, Hope Schooler, Ellie Heslam, Anna Lanigan), 12:40.35.

5, Rogers (Puyallup) (Olivia DeBoer, Kylee Bolei, Abigail Atkins, Eleanor Jepsen), 12:41.35.

6, Seton Catholic (Lara Carrion, Abigail Wall, Avery Garrison, Alexis Leone), 12:49.31.

7, Camas (Bethany McKinstry, Amara Harris, Eliisa Marshall, Natalie Peddie), 13:01.59.

8, Franklin (Abigail Crowe, Peyton Miles, Gigi Bareilles, Emily Robertson), 13:14.61.

Boys Distance Medley Podium

1, Rogers (Puyallup) (Ethan Buck, Camron Ramsey, Parker Diseth, Isaac Briggs), 10:47.16.

2, Mountain View (Kyle Swenson, Benjamin Clawson, Kyle Kirsch, Chase Schermer), 10:48.71.

3, Jesuit (Jacob Nenow, Gus Clevenger, Joshua Augustine, Grant Valley), 10:48.99.

4, St. Stephen's Academy (Justus Jackson, Nathan Contreras, Gabriel Morrow, Colin Friend), 10:53.44.

5, Newberg (Zachary Giesch, Garrett Chaffee, Caden Smith, Anthony Giesch), 10:54.72.

6, Valley Catholic (Jonathan Nerenberg, Quinton Eynard, Henry Tierney, Morgan Amano), 10:57.47.

7, South Albany (Zander Campbell, Draven Wilborn, Matthew Resnik, Logan Parker), 11:00.44.

8, Sunset (Westin Boyd, Bennett Mason, Stephen Cummings, Jake White), 11:01.62.

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Best photos from 2022 Jesuit Twilight Relays

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