Anderson became 'the aggressor' at state meet

RACE VIDEO

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Things are different for Tanner Anderson this week.

With a single race he has gone from being a guy who might be No. 2 on his own team to one of the best performers in the history of the Washington (WIAA) cross country championships.

“Knowing how things turned out, I’m a bit surprised,” Anderson, a junior at Spokane’s North Central, said Sunday. “Freshman year I remember watching (Joe Hardy) run 8:55 on the track and thinking he’s going to be one of the best of all-time and that Kai (Wilmot) was one of the best, too.”

Hardy finished just a step behind Anderson on Saturday in Pasco, as both of them ran under the 5K course record, in 14:44.9 and 14:45.2.

“I never thought I’d be close enough to be in position to beat Joe Hardy,” Anderson said.

Earlier this season at the Richland Invitational (three miles), a meet that brought together most of Washington’s top runners (except Gig Harbor’s), the finish order went like this: Hardy of Seattle Prep in 14:47.66, John Dressel of Mt. Spokane in 14:49.59, Wilmot in 14:51.65 and Anderson in 14:54.27.

Four weeks later, Anderson flipped that script. (Photo at right by Gary Paulson)

“It was a bit after the mile and a half (mark), John and Joe were right there,” Anderson said. “I kind of executed (my plan there). I flew that down downhill and started to pull away then. I knew then I needed to do something with it. The last half-mile I knew the win was still get-able and that I might as well go for it. But I knew (Hardy) would be coming.”

Anderson heard people outside the flagging say that he had 30 meters, or about 3.5 seconds, on his pursuers.

It took confidence to make that move and then fight to hold onto the lead. And by Anderson’s own admission, he’d never fought hard for a win before.

“(Assistant) Coach (Len) Long told me the night before the race ‘ Your biggest regret will be not trying to win,’” Anderson said. “The plan was to execute, cover all the moves, and put one (of my own) in.”

At Richland, Anderson said, he learned that he was unsatisfied to merely run a fast time without competing for the win.

“I definitely feel like I turned over a new leaf (Saturday),” he said. “It could be a turning point for me. Sometimes in races I would back off and think (the leaders) will come back to me. It’s taken a while to build up the strength and confidence to be the aggressor.”

Anderson’s talent and his near-flawless mechanics have been evident for years.

“I don’t know if I’d say I was massively surprised,” North Central coach Jon Knight said. “He’s been breaking our workout records and getting closer to (John) Dressel as the season went on.”

Knight also admitted he didn’t see all of the final 200 meters to the finish. He was working his way through the crowd to the finish area. He saw that Tanner was leading Hardy but assumed that the Seattle Prep senior would kick past him for the win.

It wasn’t that the coach didn’t have faith in Anderson, but in that situation he knew that Hardy’s kick would be tough to overcome. Two years ago at Pasco everyone watched Shadle Park’s Nathan Weitz build an even bigger lead on Kamiakin’s Anthony Armstrong. And the faster Armstrong made up the ground and caught Weitz.

A similar scenario seemed to be playing out and most everyone in attendance probably thought Hardy would get to the finish line first.

Most everyone includes Hardy.

“If that race was 100 more meters, I could’ve got him,” Hardy told the Seattle Times. “But that’s not the way it is, and I don’t want to be condescending to Tanner. He ran an incredible race.”

Knight was more focused on his team at the finish line and the fact that Anderson was about to score one or two points. North Central won its eighth consecutive Class 3A title and fifth man Andrew Vandine’s 17^th-place finish (15:51.15) was a notable contribution as well.

In hindsight, even the jaw-dropping winning time of 14:44.9 doesn’t seem far-fetched given that Anderson ran 14:34 for 5K on a track last spring.

There is not much time for prolonged congratulations. North Central’s next mission is to try and win the NXN Northwest championship on Saturday outside Boise, Idaho. (North Central has never lost this race in the six years it’s been held).

“Our team’s excited and anxious to see what happens next,” Anderson said.