Badger runners have stellar day
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| Both the Badger girls and boys cross country teams had an outstanding day Thursday at Priest River, with both teams earning wins. |
| Karen Perkins photo |
Badger runners posted some of their best races of the season on Thursday at Priest River Lamanna High School. The course was mostly flat, which made for rapid times on a brand new course. The small meet size allowed the Badgers to practice race tactics and come out with great team wins.
In an impressive girl’s race, Jill Alexander, Jordan Merz, and Hannah Lysne led the Badgers front pack with times of 23:02, 23:19, and 23:51 respectively. Alexander finished second overall, Merz was third, and Lysne fourth.
Amanda Bauer also ran well, improving her time to 25:13. Cheyanne White finished in 25:43, a personal best by about four minutes. All Lady Badgers finished in the top 10 and earned medals.
The ladies beat Priest River 18-34 to take home their first top place trophy this year. Cross country scoring means the lower scores win.
The Badger boys followed up with another stellar performance.
Senior Luke Reoch set the course record with a rapid 16:47. Junior Jacob Perkins came in second overall with a 17:04 mark. First year runner Nolan Stidham, continued to show improvement, coming in sixth overall and broke 20 minutes for the first time, finishing in 19:18.
Tucker Cavender finished in eighth place and posted a 19:21 in the process. Alva Swanson finished in 19:39 for tenth place, and Brad Thompson finished right behind him in 19:42.
Freshman Eric Ellis also broke 20 minutes, finishing in 19:58. Louis Balcaen came in at 20:27 and teammate Alex Urbaniak finished at 25:20. The final score had the Badgers defeating Priest River 27 to 32, a close margin in cross country.
The Priest River Invite is the first time this season both cross country teams won first place as a team. Tucker Cavender appreciated the competition with Priest River’s Josh Malakolusky, who finished one-tenth of a second second faster than Cavender. The two were seen embracing and high-fiving at the finish and at the awards ceremony.
Coaches enjoyed seeing their teams win, but also do so with sportsmanship, congratulating the other teams on great races.
The Badgers will next race at the Bob Weisel Invite in Moscow Friday October 4.