2 Kennewick cross country stars are worth the price of admission for Saturday’s Pasco Invite

Fans of local high school track and field might do well to attend the Pasco Invite on Saturday at Edgar Brown Stadium — for many reasons.

But two of the biggest are to see Kennewick’s Macy Marquardt and Kamiakin’s Isaac Teeples.

A lot has happened to these two seniors in the past few months. And while they’re starting to rev things up on the track, they knocked the Northwest over with their last season of high school cross country.

In addition, they both were named Washington State Gatorade Players of the Year in cross country.

And both Teeples and Marquardt are making their college plans now.

North Carolina, Colorado, Gonzaga and Washington were looking at Teeples.

“North Carolina is far away, and there was a lot of pressure from them to decide early,” he said.

For Teeples, the decision came down to either Brigham Young University or Washington State University.

“It was probably the toughest decision I’ve made in my life,” said Teeples, who ended up choosing BYU. “I was just gonna go down there and visit. But I really liked the atmosphere.”

It didn’t hurt that BYU’s Conner Mantz — a two-time NCAA cross country champion — took Teeples out on a run a couples of times during his visit.

“We’d go out on a 10-mile run and talk about everything. It was interesting,” said Teeples.

BYU coach Ed Eystone said that Teeples has a chance to impact the 2022 cross country team.

Kamiakin coach Matt Rexus believes Teeples can dominate in both cross country and track.

“I feel like he’s pretty darn good at both,” said Rexus. “A lot of kids are good hill runners but not necessarily good with track speed. Isaac is super good at both.”

The elevation in Provo, Utah, where BYU is located, is 4,800 feet. And that seems to help runners get better.

The whole recruiting thing gave Teeples some anxiety. But now he’s found relief.

“It really is,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of stress the last few months. I do feel stress free.”

Running also helps him.

“I’m usually (running) around 70 miles a week,” he said. “I run six days a week, and if on the seventh day I haven’t hit 70, I’ll finish it off with an easy run.”

It was the second year in a row that Teeples won the award — a rarity in that no one usually wins it twice.

Teeples won state cross country championships as a sophomore in 2019, and again as a senior in 2021. Of course, there was no state meet in 2020 because of the pandemic.

In 2021, Teeples helped lead Kamiakin to the state team title as well.

And he placed second at the Nike Cross Northwest Regional Cross Country Championships in December.

For Marquardt, choosing to run next fall at Boise State University turned out to be a no-brainer.

“I love Boise. The campus is not super fancy. It’s not decked out like Oregon,” she said. “But the campus is so much a part of the city, and it’s a city full of parks. There are so many trails there.”

Marquardt doesn’t mind admitting that cross country is her first love. After all, she easily won the 3A girls state title last November in Pasco.

“I love cross country the most,” she said. “I love the courses. You get to travel through terrain. In track, it’s just running around an oval.”

That doesn’t mean she doesn’t care about winning in track, though. She hopes to run the 10,000 meters come college track season.

Running, for her, is therapy.

“During COVID, I would go out and run away from my problems. It was time spent being by myself,” said Marquardt. “I’ve always liked running. I like being by myself, no one telling me what to do. I’ve always liked working hard. I’m very driven.”

So keep an eye on both Teeples and Marquardt on Saturday. Both could try to double in the 1600 meters and 3200 meters.

The meet begins at 9 a.m. and could finish around 6:30 p.m.

Others to watch

Here are 10 more athletes or relay teams to keep an eye on Saturday:

• Jackson Cluff, West Valley-Yakima. Currently, he’s the top boys long jumper in the state at 22 feet, 7 inches. In addition, he’s already cleared 6-6 in the high jump.

• Chloe Foerster, Jesuit. This Oregon standout is nationally ranked in both the girls 800 meters and the 1600. Foerster has run the 800 in 2:06.10, and the 1600 in 4:38.75. Both times ranks her No. 3 in the nation.

• Katelynn Gelston, Hanford. Bound for Oregon State University, Gelston won the women’s discus invitational last Saturday at the Arcadia Invitational with a toss of 156 feet even. That’s the best mark in the state, and No. 6 in the nation. In addition, Gelston’s 43-3.75 shot put mark is ranked second in the state.

• Caden Hottman, Hermiston. The Bulldogs senior has the state’s best shot put mark at 56-0 feet. His discus toss of 185 feet, 8 inches, ranks him second.

• Lyricc Lopez, Foster. Standout athlete leads the state of Washington in two different events: the boys 400 meters (47.59 seconds) and the 300 meter hurdles (37.26 seconds).

• Brooke Lyons, Tahoma. The west side school always has an outstanding sprinter on its girls team. This year, it’s no different. Lyons has the best 200 meters time so far this season at 25.28 second. Her 12.26 seconds time in the 100 meters is No. 3 in Washington.

• Amanda Moll, Capital. Assistant meet director John Morgan told the Herald this week that Moll — the top girls pole vaulter in the nation with a height of 14 feet, 9.5 inches — is expected to compete at Edgar Brown Stadium on Saturday. And if she’s here, it’s likely her twin sister, Hana Moll, should be here too. Hana Moll has a height of 13-10, which is No. 3 in the nation.

• Redmond girls relays. The Seattle suburban school ranks among the state’s best in all three relays: 4x100 at 49.60; 4x200 at 1:44.0; and 4x400 at 3:58.17. The 4x100 relay may be the most interesting: Kamiakin (50.29) has the second-best time in the event going against the Mustangs.

• Dash Sirmon, Walla Walla. The Blue Devils senior has already committed to throwing the javelin for the University of Washington men’s track and field team next year. On April 1st, Sirmon threw it 207-3 at the Eastmont Invitational. That gives him the No. 3 ranking in the nation.

• Kade Smith, Chiawana. The basketball standout should be favored in the boys triple jump. Smith has touched 43 feet, 11.25 inches already this season.

This story was originally published April 14, 2022 at 11:56 AM.