Every fall Bill Sumner knows that his Auburn Riverside boys cross country team will be competitive.

This year was no exception for the Ravens coach.

Six of seven runners are back from a team that finished ninth at last year’s state 4A meet. The deep and swift lineup is led by senior Kenny Krotzer, who finished 11th at Pasco.

With the Ravens receiving a No. 7 preseason state coaches’ ranking, Sumner still had no idea how good a team he had until Sept. 26, when Auburn Riverside finished second at the Nike Pre-Nationals in Oregon.

“We came out and beat everybody, except Palos Verde in California,” Sumner said. “And we easily beat some of the teams that have been ahead of us in national rankings and state polls. So it was kind of like, ‘Oh, great race for us.’ They just came out and ran it hard and showed what they were made of. I knew they were good, but all of a sudden I realized they were really good.”

If the finish at the Nike meet wasn’t enough proof of the team’s potential, the Ravens turned around and grabbed another second-place finish, this time at the Sunfair Run in Yakima on Oct. 3.

“To come in last weekend and beat Gig Harbor, Kamakin and some of the teams that were ahead of us, it kind of really showed we’re consistent,” Sumner said of the showdown in Central Washington. “Two weeks in a row we’ve run really good races. We should be a top-five team in the state.”

For the Ravens, it all starts with Krotzer in the No. 1 spot. Krotzer takes over where the departed Julian-Blake Cowan – who finished third at state last season – left off.

“I’m not surprised at all (about our success),” Krotzer said. “What we do is just focus on hard work, because that’s how you get good. Every year there is one guy – last year it was Blake – and you take a look at them and see how hard he is working. This year I guess that is me.”

“Our top-10 guys worked really hard all summer long,” Sumner said. “I knew we had Kenny coming back, and all but one guy coming back from our state team from last year. We lost Blake (Cowan), which was a big loss. He was just a great runner. But we knew we were going to move up from where we were last year at state.”

In addition to Krotzer, the Ravens return senior Nate Gesell, junior Nick Lawrence, junior Jeff Miles, senior Hunter Cowan and sophomore Skyler Cowan and add sophomore Korey Krotzer.

“Gesell (the team’s No. 2 runner) is actually a transplant from baseball and football. He’s only been running for us for two years,” Sumner said. “He made varsity last year and then this year has just had huge improvements. (He) just worked hard this summer and ran a 15:39 last week at Nike. He’s running great and running smart.”

“Miles is back from an injury in track last season,” he continued. “He was our No. 3 runner last season. Right now, he’s our No. 5 or 6 runner. But once he gets healthy, he should be up there with Korey (Krotzer), Kenny’s brother, and Nick and Nate, too.”

Sumner said he currently has Lawrence running in the No. 3 spot, with Korey Krotzer at four, Miles at five, Hunter Cowan at six and Sklyer Cowan at seven.

“Our No. 8 guy, junior Keefe Hanson, could actually be a varsity runner on any other team in the league,” Sumner said. “We’ve had strong groups of four or five runners before, but never 10 runners deep.”

Sumner said team unity has fueled the Ravens’ good fortunes.

“They’re here every day,” he said. “Each one of them relies on the other. … We’re just trying to trust each other. And with that comes the expectations of accountability, being here every day and working hard every day. And every time we get on the course, all seven of them have to compete well.”

Gesell agreed, adding that his teammates bring out the best in him.

“It helps me run a lot better because I want to run well for the rest of the team too,” he said.

So far, the Ravens have been setting a quick pace. All seven varsity runners have routinely posted sub-17-minute times on the 3.1-mile trail.

“If they can come together as a team, then their personal goals will come,” Sumner said. “I think they’re starting to believe that.”