PASCO -- Andrew Gonzales was halfway into his bid for a state title, and he knew trouble was on his heels.

PASCO -- A funny thing happened at the state cross country championships Saturday.

--4A boys

PASCO -- Today's state cross country championships will no doubt answer many intriguing questions.

RICHLAND -- Class 4A: Time -- 2:30 p.m.

PASCO -- Class 4A race: Time, 1 p.m.

KENNEWICK -- On this day two years ago, Andrew Gonzales was feeling the butterflies.

POMEROY -- Nick Lumetta covered the 5-kilometer course at Pomeroy Golf Course in 17 minutes, 59.9 seconds to win the Southeast B district tournament.

No one can accuse the members of the North Central cross country team of being socialists, because they do not like to spread the wealth.

RICHLAND -- It's not historic, but it's pretty dang rare.

BEND, Ore. -- The Hermiston boys, led by district champion Jordan Ringe, qualified for state for the fifth straight season, losing by one point to Summit at the Intermountain meet.

WENATCHEE -- The Richland girls ran away with their third straight district title Thursday, finishing with less than half of second-place Davis' point total in the CBBN 4A race at Walla Walla Point Park.

It is a tale of two vastly different district races today at Hanford and Wenatchee.

WAITSBURG -- Nick Lumetta covered the 5-kilometer course in 18 minutes, 1 second to win and lead Tri-Cities Prep to a clear win over St. John-Endicott.

KENNEWICK -- The Southridge boys wrapped up second place in the CBBN cross country dual-meet standings Thursday by edging Kamiakin at a seven-team meet at Lawrence Scott Park.

Here are the 2008 Mid-Columbia cross country standings:

Today marks the end of the dual-meet season for CBBN teams and the beginning of the march to their respective 3A and 4A state meets.

DAYTON -- Nick Lumetta's third-place finish helped the Tri-Cities Prep boys to finish second in a nine-team meet at Dayton High School.

RICHLAND -- All Andrew Gonzales wanted to do was get out fast, run hard and push the pace under 15 minutes.

RICHLAND -- All Andrew Gonzales wanted to do was get out fast, run hard and push the pace under 15 minutes.

CONNELL -- Royal's Ethan Tonnemaker won by 32 seconds in a SCAC cross country meet at Connell High School.

A critical eye on Jordan Ringe's impressive running résumé reveals an interesting item.

The Richland Invitational has been the scene of some incredible races over the years.

POMEROY -- Warren Miller of St. John-Endicott and Waitsburg-Prescott's Maya Garcia won the individual races, but Tri-Cities Prep won the boys and girls team titles at Pomeroy Golf Course.

PASCO -- Royal sophomore Ethan Tonnemaker and Pasco junior Marisa Vander Malle won the Pasco Big Cross Invite races Saturday at the International Course, while Moses Lake won the boys team title.

BENTON CITY -- Jose Marcial and Leo Alvarez had top-four finishes to lead Kiona-Benton to a pair of narrow SCAC victories over Connell and Goldendale.

The Mid-Columbia had several outstanding performances at invitationals last weekend.

EAST WENATCHEE -- Richland girls finished 2-3-4 behind winner Erin Hegarty of Hanford as the Bombers (9-0) outscored the rest of the field during a CBBN meet at Eastmont.

CONNELL -- Pasco junior Marisa Vander Malle posted a 16-second victory at Saturday's Connell Invitational cross country meet, finishing the 5,000-meter course in 19 minutes, 39 seconds.

OTHELLO -- Eduardo Torres of Othello was the second runner to cross the finish line during Thursday's CWAC meet.

HERMISTON -- Each season, top programs schedule one or two elite meets to give their best runners a chance to test their mettle against top-flight competition and the rest of the team some big-meet experience.

PASCO -- Nick Lumetta and Samuel Mota-Martinez finished second and third in a boys meet at the Big Cross course near the Tri-Cities Airport.

SPOKANE -- Southridge's Andrew Gonzales won the Highlander Invitational seniors race by six seconds, covering the 2.5-mile Shadle Park course in 12:29, while Kamiakin's Anthony Armstrong won the freshmen race in 13:01.

MOSES LAKE -- The Southridge boys and Richland girls ran their records to 6-0 during a CBBN meet at Moses Lake State Park.

An expected big season for Andrew Gonzales got off to a huge start when the Southridge senior set a course record Saturday at the Bellarmine Invite in Tacoma. Gonzales blazed through the 2-mile course in 9 minutes, 40.6 seconds.

TACOMA -- Southridge senior Andrew Gonzales won the Bellarmine Prep Invitational in Tacoma, setting a course record of 9 minutes, 40.6 seconds over the 2-mile trek.

EAST WENATCHEE -- Ross Lindell and Bekah Waterhouse crossed the finish line first in the Eastmont Invitational, which included Wenatchee and Moses Lake.

PASCO -- Nick Lumetta covered the Pasco International Course in 20 minutes, 28 seconds to lead Tri-Cities Prep over four other programs in a cross country meet.

Here are the league previews for the Mid-Columbia cross country season:

Janette Rodriguez doesn't like running any more than most people. It's a resounding statement, considering how well her sophomore season went last fall as she took her first whack at cross country.

SPOKANE -- Richland's Katie Mahoney covered the 3-mile course in 19 minutes, 13.5 seconds for a 10-second victory at the Tracy Walter Invite, staged at Audubon Park in Spokane.

The latest Washington Coaches' Poll as of Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2007: