Mercer Island Mountain Bike Team Competes in State Championships


The Mercer Island Middle and High School Mountain Bike team competed in the state championship race in Spokane on May 22nd  fielding 330 riders from across the state. This was the fourth and final race of the spring season. Eight Mercer Island Middle school athletes raced to field a complete team. The middle school team finished ninth of 24 teams in the state championship race and finished seventh in the season team standings. 

Mercer Island ninth-grader Benjamin Williams cruising in the forest at the state championship race in Spokane on May 22 | Photo courtesy Rob Hansen

The athletes continued their progression in the championship race. The team was treated to a beautiful and challenging 6.1-mile course at Riverside State Park with perfect racing conditions. The middle school team members raced to the following results. 

  • Zane Shiers, fourth of 35 sixth-grade boys  
  • Scout Bates, seventh of 17 seventh-grade girls  
  • Quinn Shiers, ninth of 55 eighth-grade boys  
  • June Bailey, eleventh of 17 in seventh-grade girls  
  • Finnley Bunker, twenty-sixth of 46 seventh-grade boys 
  • Samuel Greer, thirtieth of 35 sixth-grade boys  
  • Alex Wirkkala, thirty-third of 46 seventh-grade boys  
  • Oliver Lee, thirty-fifth of 55 eighth-grade boys  

Three athletes finished in the top ten season results in their category based on results across all of the races this year.

  • Zane Shiers, second sixth-grade boys 
  • Quinn Shiers, seventh eighth-grade boys  
  • Scout Bates, eighth seventh-grade girls 
Mercer Island seventh-grader Scout Bates starting a decent at the state championship race in Spokane on May 22 | Photo courtesy Rob Hansen

The team had three high school athletes compete in the intermediate high school category of 88 riders. The Mercer Island athletes are Taylor Yetman (34th place), Benjamin Williams (35th place) and Connor Auld (43rd place) who worked together through the race during the two laps of the 6.1-mile course. 

Mercer Island sixth-grader Zane Shiers taking fourth place at the podium at the state championship race in Spokane on May 22

The team will open the next season in the fall. More information about the team and results are available at https://MercerIslandMTB.org