EHS grad Storm leads the pack in Portland

Hunter Storm was seconds away from setting a new school record in the 6,000 meter.

It seems that Hunter Storm is always on the run – first for her hometown Enumclaw High Hornets and now for the Vikings of Portland State University.

A sophomore at the Big Sky Conference school, Storm recently put the finishing touches on an outstanding second season of collegiate competition.

Here’s a quick look at her accomplishments. During the past few months, Storm:

• was the top finisher for the Viking women during every meet in which she competed;

• moved up to fifth on PSU’s all-time list in the 4,000 meters, finishing with a time of 14 minutes, 24.4 seconds during the Sept. 7 Viking Rust Buster meet;

• placed third overall at the Charles Bowles Invitational, hosted on Oct. 5 by Willamette University, the highest individual finish of her career to date;

• came within 3.3 seconds of PSU’s school record in the 6,000 meters while finishing in 20:51.4 at Santa Clara University’s Bronco Invitational on Oct. 19;

• placed 23rd overall at the Nov. 2 Big Sky championships, hosted by Northern Colorado University in Greeley, Colo.;

• placed 70th overall at the NCAA West Regional, hosted Nov. 15 by Washington State University and staged nearby at the Colfax Golf Course (her placing was 77 spots higher than where she finished as a freshman).

The West Regional brought together runners from universities both large and small. Portland State placed 21st in a field of 35 teams; of the Top 10 finishers, six were from the Pacific 12 Conference.

Storm chose to run for the Vikings following a standout career at Enumclaw High. She was named the cross country Athlete of the Year in the North Puget Sound League’s Olympic Division as both a junior and senior. She was a first-team, all-league selection all four years as a Hornet.