Girls grab second at state; Sayers, Craig run well for boys

By ROBERT JAMES

Managing Editor

The Bonners Ferry High School girls cross country team used a strong group effort to claim second place at the state cross country meet Saturday in Lewiston.

Led by Melody Braden's fourth place overall finish, the girls scored 100 points, beating third-place Shelley by 21 points. Bear Lake ran away with the team title by placing five runners in the top 10 at the meet and ending up with just 25 points.

The second place finish, however, improves upon last year's third-place finish, and every single runner for the Badgers improved her time on the Lewiston course. The team competed in Lewiston earlier this season and this time around, Badger runners showed they were peaking at the right time.

"I am very pleased with the effort they put in at the end of the year," coach Paul Bonnell said. "Everyone improved significantly."

Braden, for example, shaved about a minute off her time, finishing in 20:23.75.

Casey Hampton equalled her 11th-place finish of a year ago and knocked nearly two minutes off her earlier Lewiston course time, finishing in 21:11.81. Mandy Sandaker also earned a medal in the race with her 16th place finish. Her time of 21:42.47 was two and half minutes better than her previous time at Lewiston.

The course had a sandy start as the teams lined up on a beach. The terrain was flat, but torn up and difficult to run on, Bonnell said. Braden came to the hilly part of the course running well back in the pack. Once the runners hit the hills, however, it was a different story.

"That's where they made their move," Bonnell said.

Badger runners passed many others on the uneven terrain, largely due to the team's training during the year. The team ran many hills to get ready, Bonnell said.

Bonners Ferry earned the second-place trophy largely due to the team's depth, Bonnell said. The difference between second and fourth can be attributed to the strong finishes not only by Braden, Hampton and Sandaker, but also by Molly McClintock (29th place), Riley Boorman (50th place), Rayanne McLeish (51st), and Camille Robertson (69th). McClintock and Boorman's scores counted in the top five for Bonners Ferry and earned the team 25 and 45 points, respectively. The 4-5 runners for fourth-place Weiser scored 44 and 56 points, 30 points higher than Bonners Ferry. There was just a 28-point difference between second and fourth.

The team peaked physically and mentally at just the right time, Bonnell said. It allowed the girls to catch the tradition they started the year chasing. Bonners Ferry has placed in the top three at state now for five years in a row.

Ray Sayers passed four runners in the final 600 meters to grab a medal at the 3A state cross country meet Saturday in Lewiston.

It was the second medal in a row at the state meet for Sayers, who finished 19th this year. Last year he finished 17th.

First-year runner Tyler Craig ran a tremendous race and ended up 32nd in the race.

Both runners improved their times dramatically from the Lewiston Invitational, held on the same course a few weeks ago.

Sayers cut his time by 45 seconds and Craig improved by more than a minute.

"They really rose to the occasion," Bonnell said. He felt his entire team, both boys and girls, peaked at the right time.

"They had outstanding races all around," he said.