W.F. West freshman phenom Mercedes Ricks continued her tear to start the girls cross country season, easily outdistancing the competition for the individual victory in a dual meet with Centralia on Wednesday at Stan Hedwall Park.
After ending up as the Bearcats’ top finisher at the Capital Invite on Saturday with a fourth-place finish in the freshman girls race, Ricks defeated runner-up and teammate Elaina Koenig by 27 seconds on Wednesday to win the girls race at Stan Hedwall with a time of 22:31.57. Koenig was second with 22:58.29.
“It feels good,” Ricks said. “It feels like I could have gone a little harder.”
Other finishers included:
W.F. West next competes with Black Hills at Aberdeen on Sept. 22. Centralia joins Rochester and Shelton for a meet in Tumwater on Sept. 22.