Auburn Riverside has long been a hotbed of distance running talent.

This season that legacy rests securely on the shoulders of Korey Krotzer, the defending District III 4A boys cross country champion.

Krotzer capped his district championship run with a fourth-place state finish last fall, covering Pasco’s 5,000-meter course in 15 minutes, 32.2 seconds and helping the Ravens secure a third-place finish.

This season the Ravens’ senior is one of the top 20 runners in the country, according to Auburn Riverside coach William Sumner. Krotzer follows in the swift footsteps of his brother, Kenny, a three-time state cross country championship qualifier for the Ravens who now competes at Stanford University.

“Korey is running really well with some very high expectations for state and beyond,” Sumner said. “I believe that if he can run consistently, he has an excellent shot at winning state.”

So far this season, Krotzer has posted the state 4A’s third-best time of 15:24.37, which he ran at the Sept. 24 Nike Pre-National race in Portland. It was Krotzer’s second-fastest career time behind the 15:20.8 he ran to win last year’s Westside Classic district meet.

Krotzer joins fellow senior Sam Bailey to pace the Raves this season. Bailey, who also competed in the state meet last year, has delivered a best time of 16:43.82 this season.

“Sam is much more consistent than he was last year and already running as well as he did at the end,” Sumner said.

Also returning for the Ravens is junior Trevor Love, another state-class runner from last season.

Rounding out the team’s varsity squad are senior Edward Yakimchuk and sophomores Mattias Gildeman, Patrick McFarland and Nik Scorniakoff.

“We are young but improving weekly. We are really expecting great things from our top four guys,” Sumner said.

AUBURN TROJANS

The Trojans hope an experienced squad of returners, including No. 1 runner and senior co-captain Cody McCranie, leads them to a berth in the Westside Classic.

“We only lost one of our top seven from last year, and everyone has improved, so we’re definitely a better team,” coach Greg Isham said. “We’re aiming to make it as a team to districts, which we haven’t done since our school split to form Auburn Mountainview.”

Last year the Trojans had just one runner, McCranie, qualify for the district meet.

This fall the team is paced by junior Tyler Flannery, who posted a 16:37 at last weekend’s Tomahawk Twilight Invitational in Marysville.

In addition to McCranie and Flannery, the Trojans look to seniors Cole Frampton and Ryan Ball, juniors Brennan Wallin and Bridger Deschamps and freshman Tyler Perrin to strike the right balance between chemistry and performance and power the team to a district showing.

“The top runners are a close-knit group,” Isham said. “They all have a great sense of humor, so we have a lot of fun joking around and kidding one another. While being devoted runners, they are well-balanced individuals with a lot going on in their lives besides running.”

AUBURN MOUNTAINVIEW LIONS

The Lions showed a glimpse of their potential at last weekend’s Tomahawk Twilight Invitational, taking home fourth in the multi-classification team competition.

Junior co-captain Chris Scharer led the way, finishing seventh. Scharer, a two-time state 3A competitor, has posted a career-best time of 16:21.2, the 24th fastest 3A time in the state this season.

Close behind Scharer is senior Dylan Summerlin, who looks to make his fourth state 3A appearance. Summerlin, who was fifth at subdistrict last year, is trading spots at the No. 1 spot with Scharer this season.

Brothers Ethan Rumbaugh, a senior, and Aarun Rumbaugh, a junior co-captain, round out the returning runners for the Lions.

“(They) are brothers with very different personalities but who share a common work ethic, coach-ability, and an incredible desire to compete to the point of collapse,” coach Tyler Nugent said. “They are team-first runners, and it’s a joy to watch them continue to improve every season. (All) these guys work so hard every day in practice and put it all on the line race day. I’m hoping they will lead our team to great things come postseason.”

Newcomer Jonah Zucati, a promising freshman, is making a good impression, Nugent said.

“He’s a hard-working, coachable kid who has consistently improved,” he said. “He’s been a big help to the varsity team thus far, and I expect his times to keep coming down.”

Nugent continued:

“I have very high expectations for this group,” he said. “So far, they look like the best team in school history.”