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Badger harriers work out rust in first meet |
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September 2, 2016 |
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| Tess Rae photo |
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Badger
harriers Eric Ellis and Dawson Thomas in
the boys varsity race in the season
opener at Libby. |
Badger cross country racing began on August 27
at J. Neils Park in Libby, Montana. The flat,
three-mile course made for great times and an
early learning experience for young Badger
teams.
This year the Badgers return seniors Eric Ellis
and Alex Urbaniak as well as gaining senior
Elisabeth Cowley.
A strong Junior group includes Ada Bonnell,
Rayan Naylor, and Jordan Young for the girls and
Dawson Thomas, Nick Magdaleno, Ryne Rae, and
Will Colson for the boys. Lauren Stidham will be
the lone representative of the sophomore class
for the ladies while Sam Gorton is also the only
sophomore boy.
The teams are anchored by a strong group of
freshmen runners such as Austin Donn and Nathan
Olsen. The ladies also grew with the addition of
Serenity Fahey, Mia Hosterman, and Abigail
Gorton.
“We’re very young this year,” assistant coach
Catherine DelSalle said of the teams. “They are
a great group with a lot of potential, but they
are inexperienced, especially on the girls’
side.”
It was this inexperience, in addition to early
season injuries, that led coaches to place the
girls team in the junior varsity race. The boys
faced difficult competition in the varsity race
and struggled to shake off early season rust.
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Tess Rae
photo |
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Badger Jordon
Young was way out front in the girls JV
race. |
In the girls JV race Jordan Young led the way,
blazing a time of 20:30. In her first high
school race, Abigail came in third with a time
of 22:49, just five seconds behind second place.
Ada Bonnell was the third Badger in with a time
of 24:06. Lauren Stidham, Rayan Naylor and
Elisabeth Cowley posted times of 26:46, 27:36,
and 27:44 respectively. Serenity Fahey would
come in 24th overall with a time of 29:13 and
Mia Hosterman finished in 31:28. In team scoring
the girls finished second to Kalispell’s Glacier
High School, who owned six of the top 10
finishing spots.
Three runners participated in the boys JV race.
Junior Will Colson crossed the line at 24:15 and
will move up to varsity for the next meet. The
next finishers were Alex Urbaniak at 25:06 and
Nathan Olsen at 25:18.
Boys varsity runners faced powerhouses like
Kalispell schools Glacier and Flathead, Columbia
Falls, and Intermountain League rival
Timberlake. With a winning time of 15:53 by a
runner from Columbia Falls, the Badgers quickly
fell behind in scoring.
Sam Gorton would not come across the line until
18:36 in 24th place as the first Bonners Ferry
runner.
“Sam has improved greatly from last season to
now,” DelSalle said. “He is still improving, but
has put himself in a good position for someone
so young.”
Next across the line for Bonners Ferry were Eric
Ellis with a time of 19:40 and Dawson Thomas at
19:52. Freshman Austin Donn was next with a time
of 20:00, an impressive showing for a first
official race. Ryne Rae was not far behind at
20:11 while Nick Magdaleno finished in 21:37.
In team scoring the Badgers finished eighth out
of eight complete teams. Coach Warner, however,
is not concerned yet.
“It’s early in the year,” he said. “I keep
telling the team that the most important races
aren’t until late October. We’re still learning,
still getting in shape, and still have a chance
to be more competitive. These northwest Montana
schools are tough, and I think we gained a
valuable experience in Libby.”
The Badgers next race will be their home
invitational at Naples, taking place Saturday,
September 3. Races begin at 9 a.m. at the
Stampede Lake ORV area on Plantation Drive in
Naples. |
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