Sehome boys' cross country runners Conner Johnsen and Reed Henderson helped the Mariners placed sixth, and Emily Pittis highlighted Sehome's seventh-place finish on the girls' side during the Nike Pre-Nationals cross country meet Saturday, Sept. 29, at the Portland Meadows Race Track in Portland, Ore.

Nike Pre-Nationals is one of the premier cross country meets in the country and draws teams from several states on the western side of the Unites States.

Johnsen ran to a ninth-place finish in a time of 15 minutes, 47 seconds, Henderson finished 13th with his 15:56.47 and Kirby Overman cracked the top 50, placing 44th with a time of 16:28.99.

"I thought we did really well," said Sehome coach Kevin Ryan of the boys' team in a phone interview. "Our kids battled and were only a few points away from a trophy. Conner and Reed had especially good races."

Pittis placed 14th for the girls' team with a time of 18:34.19, and Rebekah Oviatt placed 36th with her 19:23.48. Ryan said he was thrilled with the performances of freshmen Dana Ringler and Zanna Sullivan, who finished 72nd and 79th, respectively.

"The girls ran pretty darn well," Ryan said. "Emily ran well and battled. She got boxed in at the beginning. The race was ridiculously deep, and she got 14th place."

Sehome's next race is at 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 6, for the Hole in the Wall Invite at Lakewood High School in Arlington.

At Portland Meadows Race Track

5,000 meters

Team scores: 1. Rocky Mountain 112; 2. Rancho Cucamonga 163; 3. Eisenhower 175; 4. Warren 191; 5. Hermiston 207; 6. Sehome 215

Top individual finishers: 1. Wolfgang Beck (Gig Harbor) 15:16.82; 2. Jackson Darland (Sheldon) 15:30.25; 3. Mark Tedder (Battle Ground) 15:30.61

Sehome: Conner Johnsen (9) 15:47.00; Reed Henderson (13) 15:56.47; Kirby Overman (44) 16:28.99; Liam Toney (62) 16:42.14; Nathan LeTavec (122) 17:32.86; Peter Finfrock (127) 17:37.22; Zane Markosiar (139) 17:43.67.

At Portland Meadows Race Track

5,000 meters

Team scores: 1. Rocky Mountain 147; 2. South Eugene 156; 3. Richland 171; 4. Grant 173; 5. Sunset 178; 7. Sehome 229

Top individual finishers: 1. Anna Maxwell (San Lorenzo Valley) 17:37.38; 2. Sara Tsai (South Eugene) 17:43.13; 3. Erin Clark (South Eugene) 17:46.03

Sehome: Emily Pittis (14) 18:34.19; Rebekah Oviatt (36) 19:23.48; Abby Cybula (69) 20:05.09; Dana Ringler (72) 20:06.62; Zanna Sullivan (79) 20:16.70; Sarah Huffman (86) 20:21.69; Kate Hannah (93) 20:32.30.