CC: Mission girls, Ronan boys first in Pablo

PABLO - Saturday was a good day for Lake County cross country

teams.

PABLO - Saturday was a good day for Lake County cross country teams.

The Ronan Chiefs and Mission Lady Bulldogs have shown all season long that they were capable of competing with the best, and Saturday at the Western B Conference Championships in Pablo, they proved that they were the best.

"We had a good day," Ronan coach Gale Decker said. "A couple kids had their race of the year. Our boys team has had a lot of depth through eight or nine kids, and that's what put us over the top Saturday."

The Chiefs finished just seven points ahead of Plains and well ahead of Thompson Falls in third. Danny Romero used his experience on the Silver Fox course to his advantage, learning from a month ago that pacing and mental discipline would lead him to his goal. He finished third in 17:00, 54 seconds faster than he ran at the Ronan Invitational mid-September.

"Danny ran very smart, had even splits through the three miles," Decker said. "Brady (Oakland) kind of did the opposite, he went out faster than he normally does, ended up a little bit slower. But sometimes you have to go for it, test your limits and see how it goes."

Despite the early push, Oakland had just enough in the tank at the end to outrun a pair of runners and place sixth in 18:01. Jaden McNair came in next in 18:44, then amid a flurry of finishers, Nate Rogers and Robbie Hocker rounded out the scoring for the Chiefs.

"Nate Rogers finishing fourth on the boys team was unexpected, not that he doesn't have the ability, but he hasn't been in our top five all year," Decker said. "He had the race of his career."

With one week to go, Decker has confidence in his team's prospects at state.

"I feel good about our boys' chances," he said. "Just given the depth that we've had all year, the boys are on the bubble. I see us being in the top five at state, whether or not that means a trophy, I'm not sure. We'd have to have a good day, but again, having seven kids that are very competitive, there should be someone there to pick up the slack."

The Maidens placed third behind Mission and Thompson Falls, but Decker said his girls ran well and were ready to compete Saturday.

Ashley Grandchamp charged her home course to finish fourth in 21:08, knocking well over a minute from her time on the course last month. Rachel Hardy was also named all-conference, running to a 10th place finish in 22:05, a solid time for her, too.

"I'm really happy for both of them," Decker said of his seniors. "They work really hard. Rachel has been in the conference for four years, but this year was a breakout year for her."

Jade Gray (13th, 22:38), Nicki Jo Mays (23:13) and Lindsey Roger (24:45) rounded out the scoring for the Maidens who were racing without varsity runner Kianna Howell, who was out sick.

"We just didn't have the depth on the girls side," Decker said of the team scores. "The way our boys are running and the effort that we had last weekend, I think our boys are up to the challenge."

MISSION CROSS COUNTRY

It's been a fairytale season for the Lady Bulldogs who, in the school's second year of competition, have already claimed a Western B Conference Championship. On Saturday at the Silver Fox Golf Course in Pablo, the girls continued to do what they've done all year - work hard, stay focused and continue to ask more of their teammates.

"We were absolutely excited," coach Patrick Murphy said. "We knew we had the potential, but on that day, anything can happen."

Thankfully for Murphy and his girls, everything aligned.

"Four of our girls got PRs, they all ran as a team and it turned out how we had hoped," he said.

The team's top finisher, Ashley Courville, took third place in 20:42. Following her in fifth, Rose Bear Don't Walk didn't just break the 22-minute mark - she shattered it - dropping 1:13 from her previous best time to finish in 21:13. It was more of the same from there on out; Jane Makepeace (eighth, 21:50), Kaylie Durglo (ninth, 22:01) and Courtney Heath (14th, 22:40) all turned in season best times by 30 seconds or more to bring home the championship. But this dream season is not over yet; one more meet remains - the state championship in Missoula on Saturday.

"I think they're ready to culminate the season in a good way and see what they can do after all of the hard work they've put in," Murphy said.

There was no shortage of success on the Mission boys team either. Paden Alexander turned in another impressive effort, placing second in 16:33. In 12th, Raymond Matt's 18:45 was his best by an unbelievable 1:56. Dylan Evans crossed the line shortly thereafter in 15th place in 18:53, beating his top time by 14 seconds.

"I knew he had that in him," Murphy said of Matt. "It was nice to see him and Dylan really push each other to their potential this week. They've been having to run the day after their football games on Friday night and it's sometimes hard to get that motivation to run hard the next day. I hope they're pleased and happy with their performance as they should be. It was really a breakthrough for them."

Karl Daniels turned in another breakthrough performance, completing the course under 20 minutes in 19:49, a PR by 47 seconds.

"He started out last season in the 26th minute and he's continued to shave off time ever since," Murphy said. "It was fun to watch those guys Saturday. It's pretty cool to be able to watch them improve."

WESTERN B RESULTS

Boys team scores: Ronan 51, Plains 58, Thompson Falls 72, Mission 90, Deer Lodge 113, Eureka 174. Also competing: Bigfork.

Top 15 individuals: 1, Carter Montgomery, Pla, 16:12; 2, Paden Alexander, M, 16:33; 3, Danny Romero, Ron, 17:00; 4, Jacob Senecal, DL, 17:35; 5, Logan Naegeli, TF, 17:41; 6, Brady Oakland, Ron, 18:01; 7, Lucas Gruwell, TF, 18:09; 8, Robert Earhart, Pla, 18:12; 9, Jon Weaver, Eur, 18:28; 10, Dalton Nelson, TF, 18:29; 11, Jaden McNair, Ron, 18:44; 12, Raymond Matt, M, 18:45; 13, Garrett Horton, Pla, 18:46; 14, Nate Rogers, Ron, 18:47; 15, Dylan Evans, M, 18:53.

Girls team scores: Mission 37, Plains 56, Ronan 69. Also competing: Bigfork, Deer Lodge, Eureka, Thompson Falls.

Top 15 individuals:1, Chelsea Olson, BF, 20:01; 2, Felicia Earhart, Pla, 20:05; 3, Ashley Courville, M. I, 20:45; 4, Ashley Grandchamp, Ron, 21:08; 5, Rose Bear Don't Walk, M, 21:13; 6, Diamond LaDeaux, Pla, 21:26; 7, Alexandra Bartmess, Eur, 21:34; 8, Jane Makepeace, M, 21:50; 9, Kaylie Durglo, M, 22:01; 10, Rachel Hardy, Ron, 22:05; 11, Nicole Rehbein, Pla, 22:13; 12, Kinsea Farrow, DL, 22:18; 13, Jade Gray, Ron, 22:38; 14, Courtney Heath, M, 22:40; 15, Hailey Nissen, BF, 22:47.