The Scoop: Georgia History, Businesslike In The Northwest And Ohio's Superb D1 Race

2. Kamiakin and North Central Show Up Big at WIAA State Championships

The Washington Interscholastic Athletic Association Championship was one of the many state meets across the country this weekend, and, like many others this week, it had an impact on the Flo50 national rankings. 

Many of the teams in Washington don't go to major out-of-state meets, so we rarely get a chance to see how they stack up against other big-name squads. On the boys side, one team that was flying under the radar was the boys from Kamiakin High School.

Before the state meet, some of its biggest competition was the Hanford Jamboree on Sept. 1 and the Sundodger Invitational on Sept. 16. At both meets, the squad handily beat the competition, winning Hanford with 24 points and Sundodger with 20 points.

Both of those meets only had a five-team field. 

The Braves ended up taking home the 3A state title on Saturday with 55 points, a 43-second spread and an 15:44 average. Their win broke the North Central High School boys 11-year state title streak. 

Kamiakin also finished the day with the top speed rating post-merge, which put them in our Flo50 national rankings at No. 21. They have strong potential to move up with a big race at NXN Northwest. 

In Class 4A, two other teams who stepped up were Lewis and Clark and Central Valley Senior. The two have been battling all year, but this time it was Lewis and Clark which came away with the one-point win, 86 to 87. Central Valley had a better average of 15:44, but ultimately it was Lewis and Clark's 53-second compression and tight pack which helped them get the win. 

On the girls side, the story of the meet was the North Central.

Led by sophomore Erinn Hill, the squad finished first, sixth, seventh, eighth, and 20th (plus 93rd and 99th) to take the 42-point win. 

Like Kamiakin, North Central also finished the day on top of the speed rating merge with performances of 134, 124,124, 124, and 114.

The team's speed ratings compare to many other teams in the country, which is one reason why they shot into the Flo50 rankings at No. 19. 

Lastly, we need to mention Lincoln High senior James Mwaura, the No. 7-ranked runner in the Flo50.

He had an outstanding race in the Class 4A field. Mwaua earned the win in 14:48.30 for the fastest time of the day, which also gave him a very solid 195 speed rating.  

- Bryan Deibel