New coach and big turnout for cross country teams

Blaine cross country runners cool down at the end of a practice in early September. Photo by Oliver Lazenby

By Oliver Lazenby

Blaine’s cross country program has solved a problem it’s struggled against for several years: needing more girls.

Now with nine girls, Blaine has an official team – something it hasn’t had the last two years. Last season, just three girls ran cross country for the Borderites.  Since the first five runners to finish score points, it takes at least five runners to have a scoring team.

The program’s new head coach, Fryth Rasar, has assisted with coaching track at Blaine High School since 1991. In order to get her team of nine, Rasar begged sprinters and other track athletes to join, she said.

While most of the girls are new to the sport, Rasar is hopeful they will pick it up quickly. Returning runner Jamie Good has made huge improvements since last year and recently beat her previous best in the two-mile by four minutes and 38 seconds.

“She has improved incredibly,” Rasar said. “She has been working hard all summer. I’m excited to see what she can do.”

The boys’ team also has a lot of new runners; 17 came out this year, eight more than last year. Blaine’s top 2016 runners, Liam Lyons and Masahide Shibuya, are both back on the team. Last year, Lyons and Shibuya made it to the qualifying meet for state, the Northwest district championships.

Rasar, a distance runner herself, decided to try coaching cross country because coaching track is her “happy place” and she loves the age group, she said. As a coach, she focuses on encouragement and getting in a lot of miles while still making it fun.

Blaine wasn’t able to place as a team at their first race, the Sehome Invitational on Saturday, September 9, but seven runners did manage to beat their times from last year.

“We’re all just getting a feel for it,” Rasar said. “There are a lot of kids who have never done it before, so we’re all a little new at it.”

Blaine doesn’t have any home races this year.