Sophomore runner Maddi Groen qualified for the state cross country meet when she placed 26th at the Tri-district tournament, also known as the Westside Classic, on Saturday.

Groen’s time was 21:30 on the 3.1-mile course at American Lake in Tacoma, placing her in the top 30 runners and sending her to state.

Last year as a freshman, Groen just missed qualifying for state by one place at the same meet. She put in a tremendous amount of effort this season to achieve her goal.

When asked about her race, Groen commented, “I did not expect as fast as a start to this race. However, it was really good. I felt strong and confident with the pack that I was in and stayed with them to the finish.”

Maddi was the lone Pirate runner to qualify for the state meet this season.

At the tournament, the girls team finished 15th overall and the boys finished 18th. The top five boys teams and top six girls teams qualified. Vashon’s young boys and girls teams will be returning many of their runners for next season.

The Charles Wright boys are the only team from the Nisqually League that qualified their whole team to state by placing fourth overall.

Groen will compete at the state competition this Saturday at the Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco.

— Kevin Ross is a cross country coach at Vashon High School.