Viking begins quest for second state title


 

Siuslaw's Celie Mans took the lead early in the North Bend Tugman Invitational, eventually finishing second to Sailor Hutton of Bandon.

Defending state 4A cross-country champion Celie Mans of Siuslaw doesn't plan to rest on her laurels this season, her senior year.

She made that clear Wednesday at the North Bend Tugman Invitational at Tugman State Park, where she once again went toe to toe, and sometimes elbow to elbow, with arch-nemesis and good friend Sailor Hutton of Bandon.

Hutton once again finished first, with Mans a couple strides back in second with an outstanding early-season 5,000-meter run of 18 minutes, 36 seconds, the same time she ran in winning the Far West League title last year at Tugman.

"My goal is to defend my state title," Mans said. "That's like the ultimate goal, to win again. But I wanted to win this race."

Once again it was a terrific two-runner race, with Mans setting a torrid early pace.

"I thought, it's my senior year, give it everything I've got," she said. "I wasn't going to play it safe."

Mans and Hutton have been friends and rivals since middle school, first going head to head in 2011, when Mans was in seventh grade, Hutton in sixth. Hutton won 12 of 14 races she ran as a sixth- and seventh-grader, her only two losses to Mans in 2012 when the duo split four memorable meetings.

"Celie wasn't going to mess around today," Hutton said after Wednesday's race. "Celie was forcing the pace. I knew it was going to be a race."

Hutton is now 3-for-3 at the Tugman Invitational, clocking a personal best for the event of 18:32.85 on Wednesday. Marshfield sophomore Jazmin Chavez was third, nearly a minute and a half behind the pacesetters in 19:57.70.

"That was a great race for Celie," Siuslaw coach Chris Johnson said. "In the past, she would have let it bother her, and not let her see it for what it was, which was an effort, a great race."

Saturday, Mans will run her third race in eight days, the Northwest Classic in Eugene, then comes a break to Oct. 1, when Siuslaw hosts its big event, the Woahink Lake Invitational.

"I don't usually take a week off from racing," Johnson said. "In fact, I don't know if I ever have in the middle of the season. It's just kind of the way it works out."

Woahink will be the last scheduled race matching Mans and Hutton.

Then it will be Mans' last races as a Viking at the Paul Mariman Invitational (Oct. 8 in Philomath), the George Fox Classic (Oct. 15 at Brooks, Ore.) and Siuslaw's annual Run for The Brownies (Oct. 20 at Sandpines Golf Links).

She returns to Tugman State Park to defend her Far West League title on Oct. 27. The Oregon School Activities Association Class 4A state championships are Saturday, Nov. 5, at Lane Community College in Eugene.

Mans may be peaking to a fabulous final high school season if she remains healthy. To continue to improve, she now runs with the boys.

"I don't know if they're happy about that," Mans said, smiling.

She hopes to have a big payoff at season's end. She and the Vikings are defending champions at both district and state.

"If all of us do our best, it's all I can ask for," Mans said. "It's my senior year, and I just want to do the best I can."

Expect that to be pretty good, indeed.

Note: Complete North Bend Tugman Invitational results at http://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/Results/Meet.aspx?Meet=117377#/183




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