Sehome High School’s cross country teams have some of the strongest traditions of any sports teams in Bellingham. The Sehome girls team has won 13 state titles since 2002, four more than any other team in the state.
In the 2023-24 season, Sehome girls won the 2A Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) state title with 40 points, Anacortes finished second with 87 points.
“It felt good to see all the work we did being paid off,” sophomore Lil Desler said. “There is a lot of pressure on Sehome having to do so well so we rely on each other and not against each other.”
Desler was Sehome’s top runner last season, placing third at state with a time of 18 minutes, 50.5 seconds. Senior Abby Rusk finished fourth in 18:56.8, senior Sydney Harri finished sixth in 19:07.1 and sophomore Samantha Knipp finished 10th in 19:24.1.
“It would be dishonest to say otherwise that they were going to win,” head coach Kevin Ryan said. “The two previous years they were not supposed to win, they got destroyed during the regular season.”
On the other hand, the boys team has 12 state titles since 2002, including consecutive titles from 2012-2019. The boys won last season with 62 points, Anacortes finished second with 86.
“It feels good because it was the first one after a broken streak,” senior Nick Gargano said. “We have a big group of incoming sophomores that I feel can restart the streak.”
Gargano finished ninth at state in 16:00.1 and senior Skyler Gillham finished 10th in 16:01.4.
“We have 14 boys who can run 4:38 or under in the mile,” Ryan said. “All seven kids at state came back and three to five others who can challenge for a spot at state. Some of our kids would be top two or three at any other school but might not make it to state this year for us.”
Sehome has built a winning culture by welcoming runners of all levels and teaching them an enjoyable, safe and competitive way to run, Ryan said.
“We came into an amazing culture of showing up when you can and [being] as consistent as possible. That is why we are out here five days a week in the summer with no pressure,” assistant coach Conner Johnsen said.
Currently, Sehome is hosting summer training sessions throughout the area. The varsity team had a camping trip at Orcas Island, where they trained for a few days. All the athletes run around Lake Padden on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
The culture and workout process was not always as smooth as it is this upcoming season. The Sehome cross country teams battled obstacles during the pandemic.
“My freshman year, I never hung out with the team at school,” Rusk said. “Now, I will walk to class with my teammates, and team dinners are a lot more fun.”
Senior Heath Terry added he was a freshman when the Sehome boys finished third in 2021, the lowest placing in the last 20 years. He never felt connected to the team but noticed the seniors were upset. Terry and his teammates knew they had to flip the culture by having mixed team dinners with the girls, run alongside them and spend time together outside of running.
“We have a positive atmosphere,” Knipp said. “We have worked on our communication and have a supportive environment.”
Since building a stronger environment, Sehome has welcomed more than 110 runners this summer. Even if most of the runners do not attend the summer workouts, Ryan is confident his squad is destined to repeat as state champions.
These training sessions have built camaraderie, fitness and confidence to overcome being the targeted team to defeat this upcoming season.
“We address it at the beginning but don’t get ahead of ourselves,” Ryan said. “You can’t cut corners and not let each group be the same group, they have to become their own group.”
Although the number of state runners is limited to seven, Sehome’s upcoming season is limitless.
“Our Top-7 team will head to some invitationals that are farther away,” Gillham said. “We are trying to improve, win state and compete well at the Northwest Regional Championships.”
Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN's sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.
