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Girls and Boys XC take second at Kellogg;
Girls—Manager
steps in to help earn trophy;
Boys—Ranked
4th in state |
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October 20, 2015 |
by Tyler Warner
BFHS Head Cross Country Coach
The cross country regular season came to a close
last week as teams make final preparations for
district competitions coming this week. The BFHS
team traveled to Kellogg last Thursday for the
Ben Castro Invitational at Pinehurst Golf Course
on Thursday. Golf course meets, such as the one
at Pinehurst, tend to be flat courses with fast
times and Kellogg’s home invite was no
exception. The meet drew many small schools such
as Potlach, Priest River, and Kootenai, but also
attracted 4A Lakeland. Due to late start times
and many teams having long travel distances
Kellogg made the wise choice to run all high
school boys in one race and all high school
girls in another.
 The
Lady Badgers started the day on the 5k course
that featured two loops and negligible hills.
The course, however, did offer a lot of flat
stretches that make pace difficult to maintain
and turns that if done correctly can make huge
differences in placement. The first Badger to
cross the line was Senior Hannah Lysne in 4th
place with a career best 22:20. After battling
injuries for most of the season, junior Nicole
Donn looked to be regaining form with an 8th
place finish and a season best time 23:00. Ada
Bonnell had to battle down the stretch with two
Lakeland Runners for a personal best 23:28.
Lauren Stidham finished in 24:59 and late
addition manager Amanda Bauer, subbing in for a
sick runner, came in at 27:36. “Amanda was key
to giving us 5 runners. Without her stepping up
for us, we wouldn’t have had a full team. She’s
been running with us all season in addition to
her manager duties, so her dedication to the
team was really appreciated,” Coach Tyler Warner
said. Bauer allowed the girls team to finish
second overall, earning the team their first
trophy this season.
The boys team would face the toughest race of
the day. Interleague rival Priest River pushed
the Badgers all the way to the end, including an
impressive showing from freshman Caleb Gleason
who ran an impressive 17:33. Nolan Stidham would
be the first Badger across the line at 18:04
followed closely by Jack Wade at 18:05. Dawson
Thomas would come in for a career best 18:20.
Stidham, Wade, and Thomas would come in 7th,
8th, and 10th respectively, all earning medals.
Next in for Bonners Ferry was Jamin Bontrager
and Eric Ellis, with Jamin finishing in 18:31
and Eric at 18:36. Both were career bests, but
Ellis’s time would be nearly a minute faster
than his previous best. “Eric had a great week
of practice and has really had a strong season.
His performance really helped us out,” said
Warner. Alva Swanson would finish in 18:49 and
Nick Magdaleno would also finish in 19:58, both
career bests including Magdaleno’s first time
breaking 20 minutes.
Bonner’s Ferry’s eighth runner would be Louis
Balcaen with a season best 20:08. First year
runner TJ Smith would finish in 20:31 for his
best career time. Junior Sam Smith would cross
at 20:32 and Bradley Corson would finish in
20:48. Sam Gorton would round out the Badger
harriers with a time of 21:01.
(Story continues below photo).
Overall the Badgers would officially finish
second, taking home the second trophy case
addition this season. Priest River would defeat
the Badgers officially 54-53. The Spartans also
defeated Bonners Ferry by 1 point at the Priest
River invitational. “We’re just so close to one
another right now. Districts should be exciting.
With the right attitude and hard work I’m
confident we will come out on top,” said captain
Alva Swanson of the upcoming contest at Farragut
State Park on Thursday at 12:30pm.
The Bonners Ferry boys’ team enters Districts as
the fourth ranked team in Idaho 3A cross country
according to athletic.net as determined by the 7
fastest runners this season. Timberlake is
ranked number three and Priest River fifth. “To
have three of the top five teams in the state in
the same district will be tough since only two
of us can advance. It is really a testament to
the hard work these teams have put in and the
support they’ve received from parents and
coaches. The Intermountain League and North
Idaho in general should be well represented at
the awards stand at State. I think we can be one
of them,” Warner added.
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