Thursday, March 28, 2024

Massey named 1A Boys XC Coach of the Year

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While cross country season ended before the winter, the Cascade High School XC program can add one more accolade to their 2018 season.

The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association named Head Coach Dayle Massey as the 1A Boys Cross Country Coach of the Year.

The Kodiaks boys cross country team had a strong 2018 season that included winning a Caribou Trail League championship and competing at the 1A State Championship.

At the state competition, the Kodiak boys tied with Lakeside 113-113 for first place. For the tiebreaker, the judges included the times of each team’s sixth runner. Lakeside’s sixth runner had finished before Cascade’s athlete, giving the Eagles the state title. Cascade had six athletes in the boys race: Derek Richardson, Jerome Jerome, Will Cassayre, Jacob Redman, Lien Hagedorn, Owen Bard, who took third and Landon Davies, who came in fourth. The Kodiak girls also had one state qualifier, Zoe McDevitt, who had won the CTL girls race.

Massey said he was surprised to received the 1A XC Coach of the Year honor, though he noted it is “fun to be recognized.”

“Me getting the award is a reflection of the team,” Massey said. “The boys ran hard. I helped train them and I get the credit, but the whole team earned that.”

Massey has helmed the Cascade XC program since 2010. He applied for the position after former head coach Bill Davies stepped down to focus on coaching track and field.

“I’ve always liked to run and working with kids. It’s been amazing, I absolutely enjoy it” Massey said of his experience coaching the Cascade program. “ We have an amazing group of kids. It’s great seeing them train and get better. Everyone is excited to see their progress.”

Massey is not alone in leading the team as he has two new assistant coaches, Eric Bard and Stephanie Astell. Together, the three coaches help train athletes, organize workouts, discuss strategy and find other ways to help grow the Cascade XC program, which has averaged a turnout of 40-50 athletes in the last five years.

"It's well deserved," Cascade High School Dominique Coffin said of Massey's accomplishment. "I graduated from Cascade and (back then) our cross country team was 8-10 kids and that was considered big. For us to be 45-55 kids is awesome. Dayle does a lot of work with the kids. The biggest thing is he's always recruiting."

Massey said he actively recruits new athletes throughout the year. His preferred method of recruiting is talking to students face-to-face.

“We’ve had kids who started slow their first year and after four years their strong runners,” he said. “That’s really fun to see.”

He noted that several athletes who had never ran before donning a Kodiaks XC jersey fell in love with the sport and went on to competiting in marathons.

Although the 2019 cross country season is several months away, Massey is already preparing for next season. He and the other coaches are planning a couple of running camps and encouraging athletes to run in the offseason.

cross country, cascade high school

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