By Brian Smith Columbian staff writer
KELSO -- Camas junior Shane Geiger was indistinguishable from all the other runners in the 3A Greater St. Helens League district cross country meet at Kelso before the race began.
He stretched. He looked anxious. Slightly nervous. He was lumped in with the pack.
But as soon as the event started, Geiger did more than stand out. He became impossible to ignore.
Jumping out to a commanding lead midway through the first mile on a rainy Wednesday afternoon, Geiger beat his personal best time by 19 seconds, as he took first place in district with a time of 15:00.
\"I\'m extremely happy,\" Geiger said. \"This is what I\'ve been working towards all year. I felt strong and I was able to go out and run like I wanted to.\"
While Geiger dominated the boys race, Columbia River\'s girls did the same in theirs.
Finishing in what coach Jaysun Pyatt described as a \"purple army\", the Chieftains grabbed the first six places and won the team score 15-50 over second-place Kelso.
\"This is pretty nice,\" Pyatt said. \"We began this year with three goals: league champs, district champs and the trophy at state. We\'re two-thirds of the way there.\"
Allison Clark outkicked teammate Zara Lukens in the final 100 yards to take first place with a time of 18:19.
\"We\'re all good friends and we pull for each other,\" Clark said. \"But sometimes one of us has to beat the other.\"
The team victory capped an outstanding league season for the Chieftains. They are currently undefeated and ranked No. 4 in the most recent coaches state poll.
And they look like serious contenders for the state title.
\"We want to win state bad,\" Lukens said. \"We\'ve stuck together all year. If we continue to do that, I think we have a good shot.\"
Geiger has his own goals of placing high at the state meet, and his 31-second victory Wednesday put him on course to achieve those goals..
\"This race puts Shane in that elite state class,\" Papermakers coach Sherrie Geiger said. \"He\'s been pushing himself for a while now and I think he\'s finally showing what he can really do.\"
Despite Geiger\'s outstanding performance, Camas finished second to Kelso.
The Hilanders won the meet with a team score of 37, beating the Papermakers by three points.
\"Our plan was to start out slow as a team and pace ourselves,\" Geiger said. \"But I remember looking back after the first mile and seeing all those Kelso runners. I knew we had our hands full.\"
A tight finish decided the team title, as the fifth through 12th spots weren\'t decided until the finish line. Just five seconds separated Camas\' Josh Letendre (fifth) from teammate Tanner Boyd (12th).
Meet recap
3A district cross country
* Winners: Allison Clark led a Columbia River sweep of the top six placings and a team title. Camas\' Shane Geiger won the boys title, but Kelso edged the Papermakers to win the team crown.
* What\'s next: The top 10 runners and top two teams advance to the District 3/4 regional meet on Oct. 28 in Tacoma.