Girls XC take second at districts, off to state

KELLOGG — The Badgers girls cross country team took second place at districts on Oct. 20 and will be going to the state competition.

Head coach Tyler Warner said there were several new personal records gained at the districts. He said this was the advantage going into racing at Kellogg versus the Bonners Ferry course. The race location was changed due to air quality conditions in Boundary County.

Ceci Roemer led the Badgers with a time of 20:27, taking third place and improving her time by 30 seconds. Sydney Beckle was close behind taking fourth place at 20:33.

Braylyn Bayer in her second race for the Badgers earned a time of 24 minutes flat. Jaden Byars was right behind at 24:13.

“The girls team from Charter is a top contender for the state title, but I’m really proud of our girls who battled hard to qualify,” Warner said.

He added that Roemer and Beckle are projected to be in a medaling position, but we’ll have to see how the week goes and how the races play out.

The Badger girls team will compete at state with the runners, Ceci Roemer, Sydney Beckle, Braylyn Bayer, Jaden Byars and Trina Johnson. They'll race next Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Lewiston course.

The Badger boys cross country team had a great season as many runners have seen improvements in their times and running mindset.

Ryan Beckle finished in 12th for the Badgers at 18:53. Jack Woods finished in 16th place at 19:23.

“Even the boys, despite having no qualifiers, had some of their best performances of the season,” Warner said.

This was a tougher season for the boys due to Timberlake and Coeur d’Alene Charter having much larger teams.

“Coach Lawler from Timberlake says it might be his best team ever and I think they have a good shot at winning state,” Warner said.

At districts, there is no distinction between varsity and JV as there is only one race for boys and one race for girls. This allows for the runner's time alone to qualify him or her for state rather than varsity standing.

Girl times: C. Roemer 20:27; S. Beckle 20:33; B. Bayer 24:00; J. Bayers 24:13: T. Johnson 27:02; M. Hart 27:03; H. Thomson 29:08.

Boy times: R. Beckle 18:53; J. Woods 19:23; M. Thomson 19:52; J. Strugar 19:58; C. Philips 20:54; M. McCabe 21:22; N. Taylor 21:29; C. Dineen 21:30; M. Martinez 22:59; N. Murray 23:08; A. Hyde 23:16.