XC at Districts and on to state
XC girls pose with second place trophy for the intermountain league after districts meet at Priest River. They will go on to state.
(Photo by Alethia Ussher)
Badger girls XC at the start line for districts.
Collin Fairchild, Justin Strugar and Levi Bonnell running at the districts XC meet in Priest River.
Connor Alexander ran at the head of the pack in districts and finished second of the meet.
PRIEST RIVER — It couldn’t have gone better for the Bonners Ferry Badgers cross country team at the recent district competition.
“I don't think we could have asked for a better day last week for districts,” head coach Tyler Warner said of the meet which was hosted by Priest River Lamanna High School at their home course. “Fall colors were at their peak, the weather was sunny, it was a little on the cool side, all of which made for a classic day of cross country racing.”
At this point in the season, Warner said he was more concerned with qualifying for state than personal records. And, luckily Priest River and Kellogg both came through with enough kids for top three teams to qualify for both boys and girls, he added
The girls started off the day trying to duke it out with Coeur d’Alene Charter for the district championship. Ceci Roemer and Camille Ussher led the way, taking third and fourth place. Sydney Beckle and Leah Moellmer both also broke into the top 11, which means all four girls earned "all-league" honors, determined by state qualifiers.
“Given how the last couple of weeks played out the girls could not have done much better or put themselves in a better position,” Warner said. “They really gave it their best shot.”
The girls finished in second at the competition, securing a trip to state, but fell three points shy of winning the meet.
“I really am pleased with this girls' team being as competitive as they were, overcoming illness and injury, and qualifying for a trip to state,” Warner said.
Warner said the boys race was exciting to watch with each team having one boy in the lead group, all vying for the top spot.
Connor Alexander led the way for the Badgers, and in the last mile Alexander started pulling away from the fourth- and fifth-place boys. In the end, Makai Peak of Kellogg shocked the league by pulling away from the pack with about 600 meters to go. Peak ran a 16:40.9 with Alexander coming in second running a 16:53.3.
Alexander said at state he wouldn't let Peak get out that far ahead. Alexander held on for second place, also earning "all-league" honors.
The middle pack of Levi Bonnell, Justin Strugar, Collin Fairchild and Wyatt Smith held together for most of the race. The Badgers having their second through fifth runners so close together ate up that group of points, Warner said.
Finishing third at districts the boys locked down a trip to state, but didn’t qualify for an Intermountain League trophy.
“I'm excited that we get to have another week with this team,” Warner said. “They're a fun group that knows the difference between work and play. They all enjoy the competitive aspects of the sport and many have aspirations to improve their times. We've been preparing for this race all season and it's time to find out how much we have left in the tank.
The girls race at Eagle Island State Park Saturday at 9 a.m. and the boys follow at 9:30 a.m.
“Hopefully we'll have some hardware to celebrate on the way home,” Warner said.
Official Score Girls
Coeur d’Alene Charter 40
Bonners Ferry 43
Timberlake 55
4 Ceci Roemer 21:11.7
5 Camille Ussher 22:13.6
10 Sydney Beckle 22:45.0
11 Leah Moellmer 23:55.6
13 Jayden Byars 24:12.8
Official Score Boys
Timberlake 37
Coeur d'Alene Charter 55
Bonners Ferry 72
2 Conner Alexander 16:53.3
14 Levi Bonnell 18:58.1
16 Colin Fairchild 19:02.3
18 Justin Strugar 19:15.2
23 Wyatt Smith 19:39.
