Dicksons dominate again

PALMER -- There is a trend forming.

For the the third time this season members of the same team, and the same family, have finished in the top two spots of a 4A men's cross-country event.

Aaron and Drew Dickson of Palmer continue to pace the competition, as they finished in the top two spots of the Palmer Invitational on Saturday.

The Dickson twins won the open race at the Bartlett Relays and the Skyview Invitational 4A men's event earlier this season.

Aaron Dickson finished at the 16:19 mark, while Drew crossed the finish line at 16:42.

"I need to start out in the front and stay in the lead," Dickson said.

And that is what he did.

The Dickson duo led for virtually the entire five-kilometer race. Aaron kept a slight leave over his brother up until the final lap and the gradually secured a greater lead.

The Dicksons held the top two positions for all but a moment in the race. Dimond's Jeff Quickel, slid past Drew Dickson to hold second place briefly, before Drew proved to be quicker than Quickel and regained his second place position for the duration of the run.

"My race was alright, but it wasn't great," Drew Dickson said. "I took the middle of the stretch a little easy but it was good enough for today."

The Dickson brother helped Palmer to a fourth place finish in the 4A men's event.

Colony's Dominique Colberg was the top finisher from the Valley in the women's 4A event.

Colberg finished fourth with a time of 19:09. Colberg was faced with tough competition in the event. West High's Kris Smith, the reigning 4A state champion, was favored heavily to win the race.

"I stayed with her for half of the race and then she took off and left me behind," Colberg said of Smith.

Smith was the lone female runner to break the 19-minute mark, finishing in 18:49.

The Susitna Valley women finished second in the women's 1A-2A-3A event. Grace Christian edged the Rams by just two point to take home the Palmer Invitational crown.

A pair of Ram runners finished in the top 10.

Tazlina Mannix finished third, while teammate Melissa Ostermick placed sixth.

Mannix and Anchorage Christian's Nadine Fischetti were at the lead for most of the race, untill Bethel's Jaqueline Davies sprinted ahead during the final lap and claimed the victory. Fishetti finished second.

Linnea Pudwill was the top finisher for the Houston Hawks, placing fourth.

More than 1,000 athletes from 44 high schools and two universities converged on Palmer High School and the Michael Janecek Trails for the annual invitational.

The meet is almost a preview of the Alaska State Cross Country Championships, which will also be held at Palmer later this month.