Runners head toward postseason

The runners of Thompson Falls took to Whitefish to run on Whitefish Lake Golf Course, taking advantage of the cool cloudy day and the gentle curves of the grassy course.

"We moved three eighth graders up this meet to fill out our teams, and they raced quite well! They were ready to compete, and enjoyed joining the high school races," Coach Sarah Naegeli said. "Great times by all, and strong races. Usually changing from 1.5 or 2 miles to the high school 5K is an adjustment, but they never let up,"

Blue Hawk Cael Thilmony led the boys team, crossing the finish line in 17 minutes, 48 seconds. It was a milestone for Thilmony, as it was the first time he broke the 18-minute mark in his high school career. Brock Ryan was next for the Hawks in 20:12. Eighth grader Weston Block kept up with varsity boys earning a time of 20:14, Evan Lofthus, also an eighth grader, had a steady time of 21:32. Tuff Ryder was close behind him at 22:01, Sean Nowlan 23:39, and Jakob Molina 24:28 rounded out the boys team.

Faith Palmer got a stunning time of 20:13 moving up in the class B rankings. Aubrey Baxter came in behind her with 21:19, Peighton Kenney crossed the finish line at 23:51, and Lexy Franck, an eighth grader, got a stunning time of 24:03. Kylee Huff (27:00) and Jaden Bewick (28:58) finished for the girls team.

The Plains cross country team is moving up in the ranks as the season progresses. The Horsemen and Trotters traveled to Hamilton last Thursday to run at the Daly Mansion. The girls were fifth overall as a team, and freshman Marina Tulloch placed ninth among the girls, crossing the finish line in 21 minutes, 9 seconds.

The rest of the girls high school team was close together as Annika Ercanbrack finished in 23:27, Ashley Ferlan 23:34, Savannah Costner 23:57 and senior Peyton Wasson in 24:35.

For the boys, eighth grader John Owen Jermyn finished 15th overall in 17:59, with senior Joe Martin in 18:47, Kalem Ercanbrack in 20:20 and Asher Seymour in 23:29.

The junior high boys finished fifth as a team, with seventh grader Simeon Costner finishing in second place to lead the Horsemen in 8:42. Classmate Cord Greer was 14th overall in 10:11, Finnian Ercanbrack crossed the line in 10:38, Talon Ferlan in 11:50 and Bryan Lakko in 12:23.

The Plains junior high girls also had an impressive finish, with Tia Bellinger crossing the finish line in 11:09 and finishing 14th among the 187 girls in the race. Emmy Russell crossed the finish line in 12:11.

The county runners will be in Polson on Saturday, October 7, for the Mission Shadow run in their last competition before the postseason. The Western B divisional meet is scheduled for Thursday, October 12, at River's Bend Golf Course in Thompson Falls.