JV Girls Claim 2nd and JV Boys Finish 3rd
Facing 15 of the 16 teams from Class AA, plus an additional 25 teams from Montana and Wyoming, the Bengals built on momentum and had a strong all-around showing in stunning September weather Saturday at the Bozeman XC Invitational.
Helena’s JV girls posted the top team finish in second, the varsity girls placed third in a field that will likely come together to stage a close battle for a place on the podium later this season, the JV boys also collected third, and the varsity boys finished fifth on a speedy day at Bridger Creek Golf Course.
The varsity girls race witnessed the first sub-18 finish since 2018, and it was another runner from the Magic City as Billings Central freshman Addison Kegel stormed to a winning time of 17:31. The last girl to run faster than 18 minutes at the meet was Billings Senior’s Tiahna Vladic in 2018 (17:44).
While Kegel was an outlier Saturday, Glacier packed a strong 1-2 punch with junior Lauren Bissen and freshman Addie Thiel placed second and third in 18:02 and 18:19 – times that would win in most years. Junior Kortney McKay, meanwhile, ran another strong race in her first season of cross country to spearhead the Bengals’ attack with a time of 19:07 in ninth place. That effort, combined with top 25 finishes from junior Isabel Ward (17th, season best 19:45) and senior Kate Lee (25th, season best 23:03), and strong performances by junior Mary Clement (50th, 20:47) and freshman Wynona Schmidt in her varsity debut (63rd, 20:58), propelled the Bengals to third place with 155 points.
Bozeman won going away with 51 points, Gallatin was second with 119, Kelly Walsh (Casper, Wyo.) placed fourth with 168, and Glacier claimed fifth with 171.
Also running strong for Helena’s varsity girls were junior Ellie Coburn (66th, season best 21:00), freshman Ivy Kyle (67th, personal best 21:02), senior Emily Davidson (71st, season best 21:09), and junior Emmie Bermingham (77th, 21:22).
In girls JV action, the Bengals again wowed with a runner-up finish behind a potent scoring five. Senior Cooper Judd hit the gas early and kept up the pressure throughout as she ran a season best 21:20 to place third and lead three Bengals into the top 10.
Not too far behind Judd was freshman Mary Guzynski in a big personal best of 21:41 to place 8th, and sophomore Harper Johnson closed out confidently in a substantial personal best of 21:45 in 9th. Also scoring were sophomore Alexa Pipinich in a personal best of 22:26 in 20th and freshman Sadie Murray in 35th (22:56). Seniors Wren Clum and Emma Flinders were Helena’s sixth and seventh across the line in 42nd (23:22) and 62nd (24:00), respectively.
Bozeman claimed the JV girls title with 31 points, the Bengals posted 61, and Billings Senior was third with 138.
In boys competition, Helena was fifth overall with 177 points, but the Bengals were fourth among Montana AA teams. Bozeman locked down first with an impressive 45 points, Sheridan, Wyo. was second with 109, Hellgate claimed third with 120, and Glacier finished fourth with 168.
Leading the way once again for Helena was junior Milo Kauffman, posting a season best of 15:39 to place 11th. Senior Garrett Hinderman ran his second fastest time (16:16) for the Bengals to earn a spot in the top 25 at 22nd.
Also scoring for the Bengals were freshman Emory Kreissler in 30th (16:38) – holding down the Bengals’ No. 3 position for the second time, senior Ed Coleman placing 45th in a personal best 16:45 in his season opener, and sophomore Ander Svingen running a personal best 17:25 in 81st.
Like the girls, the Helena boys ran nine in varsity competition as the meet allows more than the customary seven, and the remaining Bengals across the line were junior Joel Melton (109th, 17:48), sophomore Foster Warner (114th, 17:54), junior Titus Wetzel (123, 18:02), and junior Daniel Williams (140th, 18:13).
The JV boys, meanwhile, collected their second straight third-place finish, but this time they were led by sophomore Ravin Bury, who posted a big season best to finish 9th in 18:27. Freshman Milo Sealey, again, was the Bengals’ second finisher in JV with a 16th-place finish in 18:48, sophomore Apollo Althoff was 17th in a personal best 18:52, and senior Henry Sweeney was the Bengals’ fourth top-25 finisher in 18:58 – his season-opener. Also scoring for Helena was sophomore Graham Coleman in 19:38.
Helena’s No. 6 and 7 runners across the line were freshman Evan Kaiser in 63rd with a personal best of 20:17 and junior Cole Harris 65th in 20:20.
The Bozeman Invitational was a step up in competition from the season-opener in Kalispell, but next up for the Bengals is the always amazing Mountain West Classic in Missoula, which will also serve as a preview of the state course. More than 120 teams will feature runners in a meet that welcomes programs from Montana, Idaho and Washington.
Racing begins with JV girls at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at UM Golf Course.
Helena High Cross Country 