Wood in final steps of decorated high school career

Faith Lutheran's Chase Wood has had a cross country season to remember. The senior has won six of his seven local meets and owns the top 3-mile time in Nevada.

But none of that will matter to him unless he wins his next two races.

Wood, the defending Division I-A individual state champion, shouldn't worry too much. He'll be the overwhelming favorite to win the 3.1-mile Southern Region meet at 2:25 p.m. today at Veterans Memorial Park and also next week's state meet in Reno.

"It does sometimes get to me (being the favorite)," Wood said. "Before races, I'm constantly looking over my shoulder. I'm always over thinking, 'Oh, man, there's going to be this guy. He's going to be right there with me the entire time.' So that psyches me out a little bit. But what keeps me going is the prayer my team has before the race."

The Sunset girls start the region meet at 10:30 a.m., and races will take place every 35 minutes after. The top three teams from each region and the top five individuals from nonqualifying teams will advance to the state meet.

Wood will be looking to break his personal record of 15 minutes, 44.9 seconds that he set in the league finals Oct. 17 at Craig Ranch Park. Not only did he have the top time in the meet, but he also won the I-A Sunset by more than 40 seconds.

It's those performances that have cemented Wood as one of the best runners in the state in any division.

"I don't want to come off as cocky, so I wouldn't say I was the best runner in Nevada," Wood said. "It's one of those things: people say it about me, but I wouldn't just come out and proclaim it."

But there's no denying this: Wood has been the main attraction at every cross country meet this season. He holds all of the school's running records, except for the half-mile, and is the face of the Crusaders' program.

"He's just grown as an athlete," sixth-year Faith Lutheran coach Jeff Edwards said. "He wants more than what's in his division. It's the way he's always been."

Wood's only loss this season was to Green Valley's Austin Rogers in the Falcon Invitational on Sept. 26. He finished 7.6 seconds behind Rogers, the Division I Sunrise League's top runner.

"We don't talk about that one," Wood said, laughing.

Over the past few years, Wood and Rogers have built a rivalry despite being on opposite sides of town and running in different divisions.

And even though they won't be in the same race today, both will know how the other one performs.

"When I'm at practice, I just kind of imagine he's right there with me," Rogers said of Wood. "I push it up and make the training go faster. I know when I see him at a race, I'm happy because I know there's someone I can run with. We push each other."

Wood takes pride in being able to compete with the state's best runners, but he isn't ready to call himself the king of the Southern Region.

"It's a really tough course, with the sand and loose dirt," he said. "And there's also a nice gradual uphill. I'm just working to make sure I stay in it. Push myself to finish strong and finish on top."

Faith Lutheran will be seeking its second consecutive region championship. The Crusaders won last season's title by two points over Clark.

Wood will be cheering as loud as anyone for his team once he crosses the finish line. That attitude has made him an adored teammate, one who will have a lasting impact far beyond graduation.

"Our middle schoolers all know who he is," Edwards said. "They'll walk up and say, 'How's Chase? How's Chase?' They don't want to know about me, or the program. They all want to know about Chase Wood.

"Our middle school has gone from 20 kids to 40 between boys and girls. It's gone up considerably. He's a minor celebrity on campus."

Contact reporter Ashton Ferguson at aferguson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0430. Follow him on Twitter: @af_ferguson.