Led by seniors Cole Zink and Anders Bergquist, the South Whidbey boys cross country team placed ninth at the state 1A championship Saturday.

They were joined by the lone Falcon girl runner, junior Mallorie Mitchem, who finished in 13th place out of 138 girls in the 1A race.

Running through the Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco on a clear, cool and sunny day, the Falcons continued their season-long mantra of consistent pacing along the 5,000-meter path. It worked wonders, as most of the Falcons ran some of their best times.

Mitchem ran a sub-20-minute race for the third time this season. Her time of 19:58.02 was less than 3 seconds off a career-best mark, but was fast enough for her to stand on the staggered stage to receive a medal in her third time competing in a state championship race. Facing a final hill and the last 500 meters, Mitchem sped up and was able to pass several runners to the finish line. 

“People tell me I went from 22nd to 13th in that last half-mile,” said Mitchem, who after receiving a medal wore it the rest of the day.

She was the top-ranked runner from the Cascade Conference, South Whidbey’s athletic league, and the third-ranked runner from District 1 behind fourth-place Nooksack Valley junior Amy Jo Murphy and 10th-place Meridian junior Mimi Meggison.

Out of 16 boys teams who qualified for team scores, South Whidbey’s ninth place was the third boys team from District 1, covering 1A schools from Whatcom, San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish and Island counties. In South Whidbey’s second year in a row as a team at the state meet, second-place King’s and fifth-place Meridian were the only other District 1 teams ahead of the Falcons. 

Four Falcons finished with their second-best times. Zink’s 17:13.84 was his second-best time of the season, which landed him at 35th place out of 142 racers. He described the golf course as being pristine, and hilly, but fast. Running in his third state championship, Zink said this final one got the better of him in the first mile, making him run a little faster and expending more energy than he would have liked.

“The time’s the time, the place is the place,” Zink said. “I probably went out a little fast the first mile.”

Fellow senior Anders Bergquist followed suit with his second-best career time of 17:34.80, good for 59th place.

South Whidbey sophomore Will Simms was two seconds short of his career time, with a mark of 17:58.75 for 78th place overall. It was also the second time he finished a 5,000-meter course in under 18 minutes. Kohl Hunter, a junior and first-year cross country runner, finished in 19:16.30, also his second-best time.

Only Falcon senior Truman Hood ran a personal best race at the state meet. After steadily running in the mid-18 minute range, Hood shaved six seconds off his previous best time for an 18:18.71.

Cory Ackerman, a sophomore, finished in 18:34.42, his third-best time this season. Collin Burns, also a sophomore but a first-year cross country runner at South Whidbey, finished in 20:16.19 — one of his slower times this season amid several sub-20 races.

“We were shooting for eighth place, but ninth place is nothing to sneeze at … The guys really put it out there and ran good races,” Zink said.

Mitchem and the District 1 runners ahead of her were part of a cadre of runners likely to challenge for first place next season. Of the top 20 finishers in the girls race, only six were seniors.

South Whidbey, however, will be part of the youth movement next season. Three of the seven Falcons at the state meet, plus several others on the team, are seniors this season, leaving several key spots up for grabs.