VANCOUVER, Wash. - There have been a lot of changes with the Clark College men's and women's cross country programs in the last year. The biggest change is the arrival of new head coach Scott Cook. A former Division I runner, Cook coached the Penguin distance athletes in track last spring to huge success. His athletes won two NWAC Championships with Ryan Koenninger taking the steeplechase title and Jake Beck winning the 5,000 meters. In total, he coached eight NWAC All-American's and thirteen NWAC All-Conference athletes in his lone season.  It is clear that Cook has the pedigree to lead the program into the future. "Coming off of the track season, being offered the head cross country position was such a surprise blessing," said Cook. "Inheriting such a great program with a strong recruiting class was big. I am excited to continue the success of the program."

For both the men and women, almost the entire roster is new. However, with two year colleges that is very common and a good crop of freshmen can come in and compete right away. On the men's side, that is exactly what Coach Cook expects. "For the guys, we're as talented as I've seen, so we plan to be competing for a top three spot and a team trophy," said Cook. "Right now, we don't have a lot of returners, so we're trying to build our culture." Though not stacked with returners, the men do return two of their top ten runners from last season with Benjamin Carter (Camas High School/Camas, WA) and Hayden Davis (Union High School/Camas, WA). Carter was 59th and Davis was 64th at last year's NWAC Cross Country Championships, and each followed that up with a great track season. Both runners excelled in the steeplechase in the spring and finished top twelve for the event at the Championships. Their experience and leadership will be huge for a team comprised mostly of freshmen. "Welcoming Ben and Hayden back is huge for us," explained Cook. "Having a couple guys who know my expectations and have trained with me before makes a big difference. They will be able to help bring along our young guys."

The crop of young guys is led by Dekota Houfek (Prairie High School/Brush Prairie, WA), who was the headliner of the 2025 recruiting class. Houfek was one of the top distance runners locally after finishing as the runner-up at districts and top ten at regionals before capping his season off with a 58th place finish at State. His state 5K time of 16:28 is the fastest of the new arrivals.  "Dekota is a huge piece to build our program around," expressed Cook. "Getting the top runners locally is important for the success of our program in the future and Dekota is exactly that this year."

Speaking of local standouts, a handful of 2A Greater Saint Helens League alums who were previously foes now become teammates at Clark and make up the core of this year's team. Tate Armstrong (Mark Morris High School/Longview, WA) was top ten at both the league and district meets last season and finished 40th at the Washington 2A State Championships. His personal best time of 16:24 for the 5K distance will put him among the top incoming recruits in the NWAC. Ironically, right behind Armstrong at State was new Clark teammate Evan Hollis (Ridgefield High School/Ridgefield, WA). Hollis finished ahead of Armstrong at their league and district meets and carries a great 5K personal best time of 16:46. Another member of their league was Liam Deviney (Hockinson High School, Hockinson, WA) who finished 68th at State to help Hockinson to a twelfth place team finish. 

Two athletes who have experience running at the college level for Clark- though not in cross country- hope to make an impact as well with Logan Puppo (Cleveland High School/Portland, OR and Clivine Abuya (Fort Vancouver High School/Vancouver, WA). Both athletes competed in track for the Penguins last season and should make an easy transition to cross country this fall. Though Puppo redshirted, he competed unattached and showed the kinds of times that will make him a force in cross. Mostly a 400 meter runner, Abuya qualified for the NWAC Championships in the event and will look to use his speed at the longer distance.

Rounding out the team and providing depth will be Erik Hardy (Ridgefield High School/Ridgefield, WA) and Aiden Hadlock (Evergreen High School/Vancouver, WA). Hardy has broken the 18 minute mark for the 5K and Hadlock improved a ton during his high school career. 

 

The women's team had a complete roster overhaul and welcomes an entirely new roster for 2025. With no returners, it will be a small team this year but one that Coach Cook is still very excited about. "We've got a small but mighty squad of enthusiastic women who are hard working and dedicated," Cook exclaimed. "What we lack in experience, we make up for by being curious about what we can do. The pressure is off of us so we can go out and give it our best." 

Though she didn't compete in cross country last season, Nico Field (Heritage High School/Vancouver, WA) makes the move to cross after an excellent track season for Clark. Field was All-Conference in the 400 meter hurdles and high jump at the NWAC Championships last spring along with helping the 1600 meter relay team to the NWAC title. Always willing to try something new, Field should be a top distance runner for Clark and have her times improve in track next spring because of it. "Nico brings a ton to our team," explained Cook. "She's a talented athlete, obviously, and understands what it takes to be successful in this conference. Our young team will lean on her a lot this season."  

The top runner at the team's time trial last week was Mari Perez (R.A. Long High School/Longview, WA). Perez has been the most dedicated of the Penguin women this summer and has already made big strides in her development. A program building team first winner, Perez helped R.A. Long to a State qualification in cross country as a senior. Also standing out at the time trial was Myah Manzano (Castle Rock High School/Castle Rock, WA). Manzano helped her Castle Rock team to State in cross country last season where she earned a personal best time for her efforts. A long sprint specialist, Manzano has excellent sprint times that show off her foot speed. Her 1:01 in the 400 meters at State last season will hopefully be a sign of big potential as she runs the longer distances. "Mari and Myah have been our two biggest bright spots this summer," said Cook. "As we begin this new era of our program, I'm excited to see how those two take us into the future." 

Completing the roster is Nayeli Vergara-Medina (The Dalles High School/The Dalles, OR). Nayeli had a great career with The Dalles, helping them to a conference championship and two State Championship appearances. Her 21:55 5K personal best is a solid time to build on and shows that she can contribute to this year's team.  "We love that Nayeli was a big part of her team's overall accomplishments," mentioned Cook. "When you look at all of our incoming freshmen, each of them made it to State with their high school programs. That's really important for us as we build our program. We want to have athletes who come from winning traditions. Nayeli is definitely someone who fits that." 

The Penguins begin their season on Friday, August 29th, at the Lewis and Clark Opener in Portland, Oregon. The women's race will start the day at 9:30am and the men's race will follow at 10:00am.  The schedule also includes trips to Western Oregon University and Linfield University, as well as the NWAC Southern Region Championships, before the season concludes on Monday, November 10th, in Spokane, Washington at the NWAC Cross Country Championships. 

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