By George Edgar
Special to The Seattle Times
LAKEWOOD — After a year of hard work, Kenna Patrick got the payoff at the Westside Classic.
The Thomas Jefferson senior won the Class 4A district cross country title in 17 minutes, 40 seconds, pulling away in the final 800 meters from favorites Nicole Cochran and Kayla Evans of Bellarmine Prep. The hills at American Lake Golf Course were reminiscent of the Raiders\' home course, giving Patrick something of an advantage.
\"She likes hills,\" said Jefferson coach Paul Ruston. \"The hillier, the better.\"
Patrick finished fourth last year at the district meet.
\"My main motivation was that this was my senior year,\" Patrick said. \"This was my last chance; you have to give it all you got.\"
Kentwood\'s Michael Chinchar also gave it all he had. But unlike 2005, when he was nipped at the line, Chinchar edged Tahoma\'s Jonathan Lafler to win the 4A district title in 15:20.5. Lafler won the SPSL title last weekend, just edging Chinchar.
\"It\'s the only way Jon and I can race,\" Chinchar said afterward. \"We were neck and neck; we kept on pushing each other so many times.\"
Chinchar and Lafler were even coming down the final hill before the turn toward the finish line.
\"Coming around the last corner, hearing the crowd, it gave me new wind,\" Chinchar said. \"It was the best race of my life.\"
The top six teams and 30 individuals advanced to the state championship next weekend in Pasco. Tahoma came away with the 4A boys team title, while Gig Harbor won the girls title.
Ryan Prentice of Mount Rainier won the boys 3A title in 15:34, and Auburn Riverside won the team title with 77 points. Sumner\'s Katrina Drennen won the girls 3A race in 18:11, helping the Spartans to a fourth-place tie in the team standings. Columbia River won the team title with 66 points, followed by Capital and Auburn Riverside.
Other meets
• Devin McMahon and Sarah Lord finished first and second, just four seconds apart, to lead Redmond to the girls team title in the Class 4A District II/IV meet at Finn Hill Junior High in Kirkland. In the boys race, Doug Holt of Woodinville finished in 16:04 to take individual honors, and Redmond edged Roosevelt for the team title.
• Yonaton Yilma of Edmonds-Woodway, who finished in 15:44, beat Dak Riek of Mariner by two seconds to win the individual boys title at the District One Class 4A meet at South Whidbey High School. Lake Stevens won the team title. In the girls race, Kara Sporrong of Snohomish ran away with the individual title in 18:41, leading the Panthers to the team title and a berth to the state meet.
• Axel Stanovsky and Logan Ordona took the top two places to lift Everett to the boys team title in the District One Class 3A meet at South Whidbey High School. In the girls race, Squalicum had the top five finishers — Bronwyn Crossman won the race in 18:55 — to finish with a perfect score of 15.
Copyright © 2006 The Seattle Times Company