Cross Country: Girls capture 8th place at state; boys take 14th

On Oct. 29, the Niwot boys and girls cross country teams squared off against 19 schools from around the state for the 2016 4A cross country championship meet at the Norris-Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs.

“It was an exciting day, for sure,” Head Coach Kelly Christensen remarked. “But we wanted more.”

The Niwot girls finished eighth overall, while the boys team took 14th. Coach Christensen was sanguine about the results, but clearly felt his teams could have placed higher.

“The girls performed better than their seed, and the boys… definitely a learning experience,” the coach admitted. “They definitely didn’t run to their ability, but they learned a lot.”

Senior Jenna McCaffrey was Niwot’s fastest girl, finishing in 20 minutes and 15 seconds, which was good for 29th place. Freshman Joelle McDonald was right on her heels, finishing in 31st place, at 20:19. Junior Jeri Wilcox (21:08) was 62nd overall, and senior Claire Gillette was 76th. Senior Courtney Smoljian (22:50) finished in 125th, then left the post-race ceremonies to join the Cougar volleyball team at the Ponderosa Mustang Classic in Parker.

“Courtney [Smoljian] is a great communicator and really, really responsible,” the coach said of his two-sport athlete. “It’s been incredible that she’s been able to balance both, and she’s never complained once.

“I love the multi-sport athlete,” Christensen continued. “They get to learn different leadership roles and different coaching styles. It’s great for athlete development.”

In the boys race, junior Kenny Lang was Niwot’s top runner, finishing 30th with a time of 16:58. His junior teammates Ethan Steiner (17:51), Oskar Wells (17:58), and Benjamin Bi (18:03) finished 80th, 89th and 97th, respectively.

“Only two of the boys have run at the state meet before, and they’re all underclassmen,” Coach Christensen said. “All seven will return… it looks great for next year.”

Though it was Christensen’s first year at Niwot, he found himself among familiar faces at the state meet. His former team, Palmer Ridge, set a new course record in winning the boys race, which came as no surprise to Christensen.

“When I left Palmer Ridge, I gave the keys to the Ferrari to the athletic director,” he said. “I had no doubt they would be the team that rolled everyone over.

“But I already told them that we are going to beat them next year,” Christensen teased. “I have full faith.”

If the Niwot runners were hoping for a break, it will be short lived. Several Cougars will be competing in the Nike Cross Southwest Regionals in Phoenix, Arizona on November 19. Christensen is planning to resume workouts as soon as this week.

“We’ll probably re-pump the engine pretty hard this next week,” he said. “We’ll hit training pretty hard.”

After that, the runners have a break until the first Monday in December, when the team begins indoor workouts for the upcoming track season.

Class 4A State Championship (October 29)

Boys Team Scores — Palmer Ridge, 55; Widefield, 110; Air Academy, 122; Silver Creek, 162; Durango, 168; Evergreen, 213; Battle Mountain, 217; Centaurus, 219; Montrose, 247; Standley Lake, 269; Greeley Central, 317; Cheyenne Mountain, 335; Discovery Canyon, 337; Niwot, 362; Pine Creek, 363; Mead, 405; Thompson Valley, 409; Valor Christian, 427; Eagle Valley, 441; Glenwood Springs, 445

Niwot Individuals — 30. Kenny Lang (Jr.), 16:58; 80. Ethan Steiner (Jr.), 17:51; 89. Oskar Wells (Jr.), 17:58; 97. Benjamin Bi (So.), 18:03; 117. Peter LeCavalier (Jr.), 18:23; 123. Jack Volf (So.), 18:29; 141. Luke Robinson (Fr.), 19:13

Girls Team Scores — Battle Mountain, 98; Air Academy, 130; Palmer Ridge, 132; Pine Creek, 133; Centaurus, 198; Durango, 229; Golden, 247; Niwot, 271; Wheat Ridge, 274; Thompson Valley, 275; Standley Lake, 281; Evergreen, 289; Cheyenne Mountain, 314; Roosevelt, 316; Mountain View, 320; Valor Christian, 339; Silver Creek, 350; Discovery Canyon, 382; Canon City, 421; Widefield, 461

Niwot Individuals — 29. Jenna McCaffrey (Sr.), 20:15; 31. Joelle McDonald (Fr.), 20:19; 62. Jeri Wilcox (Jr.), 21:08; 76. Claire Gillett (Sr.), 21:30; 125. Courtney Smoljan (Sr.), 22:50; 130. Elise Gillett (Fr.), 23:00; 140. Caitlin Hyers (Jr.), 23:31