In less than a week, every high school distance runner in Washington will return to the track for the 2019 season. We are almost complete of the runners to watch for this year. Take a look at the 1B boys.
Russell DeVries - Mount Vernon Christian
1,600, 3,200
The top runner of all 1B boys is back in his junior season looking for a three-peat in the 1,600 and 3,200. Russell DeVries clinched the 1,600 title by two seconds and blew away the competition in the 3,200 winning by almost 15 seconds last spring at the 1B state track meet. He ran personal best times of 4:36.52 and 9:57.74 as well. Finished in seventh at the 1B/2B state cross meet in the fall of his sophomore season. Another two state championship medals should be added to DeVries resume by the end of the spring.
Justin Peck - Trout Lake
800, 1,600, 3,200
Since this is the 1B level, as an eighth grader you can compete at the high school level in track. For two years, Justin Peck has proven age isn't just a number as he has qualified for the state track meet as an eighth grader and a freshman. Peck only qualified for the 1,600 last spring at the 1B state track meet and placed fifth overall running 4:46.33. He also ran a personal best 3,200 time of 10:21.87. Failed to make it to the 1B/2B state cross meet this season, but finished in sixth his freshman season. Can Peck challenge DeVries this season? We will see.
Kobe Deutscher - Pope John Paul II
800, 1,600
The youthful talent continues with sophomore Kobe Deutscher. As a freshman, Deutscher made it to the 1B state track meet where he placed sixth in the 800 and third in the 1,600. He also ran his personal best 1,600 time at the state meet in 4:43.86. His best 800 time is 2:05.47. Deutscher made one of the largest leaps at the state cross meet going from finishing 113th his freshman year, to finishing in seventh this fall in the 1B/2B race. Brought down his 5,000 time over two and half minutes.
Caden Deutscher - Pope John Paul II
1,600, 3,200
The older brother of Kobe, Caden Deutscher will be running in his final season of high school track. As a junior, Deutscher placed sixth in the 1,600 and was the runner-up in the 3,200 at the 1B state track meet. He ran his personal best 3,200 time in the state race running 10:29.48. He also ran his personal best 1,600 time during the season and it was 4:45.3. Finished in ninth place last fall at the 1B/2B state cross meet. Despite finishing behind his brother Kobe at the state cross meet, Caden is a better long distance runner then his younger brother.
Jonathan Brown - Mount Vernon Christian
1,600, 3,200
Jonathan Brown joins teammate DeVries as another good runner from Mount Vernon Christian to make the top five list. The junior placed eighth in the 1,600 and fourth in the 3,200 at the 1B state track last spring. His personal best marks are 4:47.31 and 10:22.7. Brown placed 24th at the 1B/2B state cross meet in the fall, and ran a personal best time of 17:17.9 this season. The top three placings for the 1B 3,200 state race are up in the air and Brown is a definite contender to be on top of the podium.
Others to Watch for:
Michael Starkweather - Grace Acadmey: Placed seventh in the 800 at the 1B state track meet and was a leg on the 4x1 team last spring.
Eric Titus Von Barnau Sythoff - Tacoma Baptist: Placed third in the 800 and was a leg on the 4x4 fifth place team at the 1B state track meet last spring.
Michael Gannon - Bickleton: Placed eighth in the 3,200 at the 1B state track meet last spring.
Zach Bruland - Northport: Placed fourth in the 800 at the 1B state track meet last spring.
Peter Boersma - Shoreline Christian: Placed sixth in the 3,200 at the 1B state track meet last spring.