6 Oregon high school cross country runners qualify for Eastbay National Finals in San Diego

By René Ferrán| Kate Peters photo by Taylor Balkom

Six Oregon high school cross country runners qualified Saturday for the 42nd annual Eastbay National Finals next weekend in San Diego.

Class 6A girls state champion Kate Peters of Lake Oswego won the West Regional in Walnut, Calif., completing the 5-kilometer Mt. SAC course in 17 minutes, 19 seconds, beating Sadie Engelhardt, a freshman from Ventura, Calif., by five seconds.

Joining the Lakers junior at Balboa Park on Dec. 11 is Franklin senior Kaiya Robertson, who punched her ticket with a sixth-place finish in 17:43.

Four boys posted top-10 finishes to qualify for the national championships, led by regional champion Tyrone Gorze, a Crater junior who went undefeated during the high school season and won the Class 5A title.

He ran 15:10 to fend off a tight pack that saw five runners finish within six seconds of each other. Included in that pack were Franklin senior Charlie North (fourth in 15:16) and South Medford senior and recent Gonzaga signee Michael Maiorano (fifth in 15:16).

Tualatin senior Caleb Lakeman also qualified for nationals with a ninth-place finish in 15:24.