Cross Country teams see both group and individual victories

The Thompson Falls Bluehawks cross country team brought home the Western B Divisional conference championship, while Plains Horseman Russell Kujala brought home his second win in two weeks

RONAN – The Thompson Falls Bluehawks cross country team competed at the Ronan Divisional meet and brought home a huge victory. The boys were named the Western B Divisional conference champions.

With four members making it all conference, the Bluehawks have their eyes set for the state competition next week.

Logan Naegeli, Josh Wulfekuhle, Will VanHuss and Kyle Kennick made all conference with times of 17:01, 17:40, 17:50 and 17:59 respectively.

Caleb Hamner came in next for the Bluehawks in 15th place overall but in 5th place for his team with a time of 18:42 followed by Daniel Kanak with 19:15. Flo Baass ended his race with 20:55.

Both Kennick and Kanak got new personal records. As the boys continue to improve, hopes are set high for their next competition and talk of medals is in the air.

“Our boys team had a great day and we’re looking forward to racing at state next week,” said Thompson Falls Head Coach Sarah Naegeli. “They really ran well this week and came together as a team.”

As for the girls, Aicia Curran came in first for the team and 18th overall with a time of 22:49, followed by Abby Croft with 24:39, Kylie Cox with 25:07, Lindsey Owens with 25:37 and Nikki Burwig with 25:45.

Overall, the girls competed well in the race and are continually sharpening their running and endurance skills.

“Our girls are looking forward to state and finishing with strong races and improving times,” said Coach Naegeli.

The Plains cross country team also competed at the Mission Mountain Golf Course in Ronan on what appeared to be a gorgeous fall day with crisp blue skies and cool temperatures. Plains Head Coach Tony Banovich said the day was perfect for cross country running.

Russell Kujala took home the conference championship winning the race with a time of 16:30. Kujala ran in second place behind Logan Morley, a cross country runner for Bigfork, and claimed the lead on a hill before the two-mile mark.

As he ran, he created a ten second gap between his competition, clearly winning the race.

“That’s his second win in two weeks and sets him up very well going into next week’s state championships,” said Coach Banovich.

Aaron Garrison came in number two for Plains with a time of 19:31 followed by Alan Ihms with 20:25, Brenen Abromeit with 20:47 and Caleb Connolly with 24:05.

Demi Horton and Kimberly Earhart brought home fourth and fifth place medals, garnering All-Conference titles with times of 20:15 and 20:16 respectively.

“Due to conflicts with volleyball, it was Kimberly’s first race in several weeks; but, the mid-season racing break didn’t seem to affect her at all. In fact, the performance was her second fastest cross country time ever,” said Coach Banovich.

Shannon Dimond finished at 23:35 and Jade LaDeaux had a time of 25:33.

“The kids have all made significant progress since running on this same course about a month ago. All improved their times by at least 30 seconds, which shows me that they’ve made good, solid and positive progress over the course of the season,” said Coach Banovich.

Banovich explained the advantage of having a conference championship meet allows the kids to compete in a championship environment, undoubtedly preparing them for the State Championship meet.

“That allows them to work out the kinks of running in a high-pressure meet and will allow them to be fully prepared,” said Coach Banovich. “Plus, they all ran on the state course during the Mountain West meet a few weeks ago so they are all aware of what the course is like and there won’t be any surprises in that regard.”

Banovich explained he had high expectations for how the group will perform next weekend, especially having shown great improvement over their season.

“Their fitness is significantly better than last year’s team and they all have a positive mindset about what they can accomplish,” explained Coach Banovich.

The State meet will be held in Missoula on Saturday and both Thompson Falls and Plains will compete at the meet.