LACEY — Kevin Hu believes the 2026 Pope John Paul II boys cross country team may be the best that Class 1B has ever seen when it’s all said and done.
Let’s back up and provide some context.
This statement was uttered from the mouth of the reigning 1B state champion, who was referencing the team that most recently hoisted the 1B state title in Pasco last November.
Now, let’s jump ahead and explain why his statement might not be far-fetched.
Five of the seven Pope John Paul II scorers from last year’s state title team are back and running significantly faster than they did a year ago. And, the Eagles have added a freshman the likes the program has never seen in Micah Henry.
Not to mention runners like Luis Geronimo, John Paul Sprouffske, Jakobe Castaneda, David Matute and others who have recorded state-caliber times this season.
That experience, talent and depth helped the Pope John Paul II boys dominate the Sea-Tac League championship meet at Saint Martin’s University on Wednesday, Oct. 21, winning the team title and taking seven of the top nine spots.
Hu earned his fourth consecutive league title by crossing the finish line in 16 minutes and 3.6 seconds — over 26 seconds faster than anyone else.
“This is the best team we’ve ever had, and probably the best team 1B’s ever had,” he said. “This team is really committed to running. They’ve been to every single summer practice. They’ve been putting in tons more miles, double the mileage of last year’s team. Everyone’s really positive. It’s a great environment.”
The Pope John Paul II girls also took home the Sea-Tac League team championship with six of the top seven finishers, including a photo finish for first place.
Senior Isla Valpiani edged out freshman Kyra Deutscher by two-tenths of a second to earn her first career postseason title with a time of 20:09.5, compared to Deutscher’s 20:09.7.
“It’s really special to me. It’s my last league meet, so I’m just super grateful,” Valpiani said. “I’m proud of my team and proud of all the work that we’ve put in this year.”
The individual titles for Hu and Valpiani weren’t without their nicks and scrapes along the way.
In the final 1,500 meters of the boys race, runners in miles two and three ran alongside one another in opposite directions in a tightly-packed, forested section of the course near the Saint Martin’s soccer field. Hu, who had never experienced two-way traffic on a cross country course before, accidentally bumped heads with an opponent running in the opposite direction.
“I went a little bit slower in the third mile when I bumped heads with someone. It didn’t hurt that bad,” Hu said. “There’s a lot of uneven footing and the hill with people coming up and down. There were a lot of roots everywhere.”
Valpiani also crossed the finish line with more bumps and bruises than she started with. She fell in a section of tall grass early in the race, and then she tripped again on a root. But she dusted herself off and claimed the league title after the dazzling conclusion at the finish line against Deutscher.
“It wasn’t too bad. It was pretty bumpy. It was a lot of work trying to stabilize myself, especially going up and down the hill,” Valpiani said. “It was definitely challenging. More than anything, I was probably just a little bit shaken up, but not too bad.”
Head coach Larry Weber was inspired by how his champion runners handled adversity on the course and pushed through pain.
“That’s such a life lesson. It’s so cool to see that they weren’t frazzled and were able to push through. (Isla) fell down twice, and to get back up, that took a lot of courage, a lot of perseverance and a lot of heart,” Weber said of Valpiani. “It was inspiring to me. (Kevin) was amazing. I thought he did great. He really picked it up at mile two. It’s really hard to do that.”
Henry finished as the runner-up in the boys race at 16:29.9. Weber described him as “the surprise of the year,” while Hu said that Henry “could be one of the best runners in Washington state.”
Three seniors took spots 3-4-5 in the boys race, as Liam Outlaw earned third place at 17:15.7, Martin Cooper ran 17:20.2 to place fourth, and Collin Camp was right behind him in fifth at 17:21.1. On a course that was not PR-friendly, sophomore Francis Cooper secured his best time yet at 17:30.9 to finish in sixth. Geronimo won a tight battle for ninth place by two-tenths of a second at 18:18.6.
The pressure of defending a state title hasn’t fazed the Pope John Paul II boys. Hu said the team made a plan at the start of the offseason to repeat as state champions and are sticking to it. Weber added that the boys are a connected, cohesive and motivated bunch.
“They’re not resting on laurels. I think they’re working harder than they did last year,” Weber said. “They’re not letting up at all. They handle the pressure extremely well. I want to be like that when I grow up.”
Northwest Christian’s top runner in the boys race was sophomore Samuel Bode in 19th place with a PR of 19:35.2.
For the girls, freshman Mira Valpiani finished in fourth at 21:09.5, and senior Lily Warne-McGraw took fifth at 21:10.7. Senior Chloe Summers placed sixth at 22:10.5, and senior Ruby Henry returned for her first race in over a month and ran 22:41.0 for seventh.
Freshman Alix Valpiani, with a time of 22:51.2, took 10th, and junior Avery Krause earned a PR of 23:18.9 to place 12th. Northwest Christian’s lone competitor in the girls race was senior Sarah Slaybaugh, who had her best race of the season at 26:22.6 to finish in 25th.
Pope John Paul II and Northwest Christian will both compete at the Westside Classic at Chambers Creek on Saturday, Oct. 31, a week prior to the state meet in Pasco.
