Bulldog harriers focused on improvement

Whitefish’s girls cross-country squad showed encouraging pack running Saturday at the Flathead Invite, stacking five finishers inside the top 120 against one of the state’s deepest AA/A fields.

Junior Sierra Gibb led the Bulldogs in 22:27.58 for 67th, keying a tight Bulldog cluster through the middle miles. Fellow junior Sophie Douglas was next in 22:51.34 (75th), followed by senior Maren Cromie in 23:05.29 (80th). Freshman Addie Nerdig continued her steady start with a 23:30.16 PR for 85th, and senior Ali Grube capped the scoring five in 25:54.26 (119th, PR).

“Improvement continues to be our focus; times for every single girl on the team improved from a week prior,” Whitefish Head Coach Richard Menicke said. “Sierra Gibb led the team for the second week, Sophie Douglas ran well, only 24 seconds behind Sierra.”

Menicke said Nerdig had a great race, and it was her first varsity action. 

The Bulldogs’ 1–5 spread stayed manageable on the course. With one senior and two juniors pacing the group and a freshman already contributing, Whitefish has a foundation to trim time and climb the Northwest A pack as September meets stack up.

The Whitefish boys cross country team may not have cracked the top tier at Saturday’s Flathead Invite at Rebecca Farm, but the Bulldogs left with plenty of optimism after seeing progress from their young pack.

Sophomore Mason Loeffler paced Whitefish with a 19:35 effort, good for 115th place in a field that featured powerhouse programs like Bozeman, Glacier, and Helena. Just three seconds back was sophomore Peter Schram, who turned in a 19:38 finish for 117th. The pair’s near-identical times highlighted the Bulldogs’ ability to work together through the middle of the race.

Seniors Koru Larimore and Logan Hyland added veteran presence, clocking 20:44 (134th) and 20:49 (136th) respectively. Rounding out the Bulldog scoring was senior Noah Oaks, who pushed through late to take 150th in 21:19.

“The boys team strength was again pack running, led by Sophomores Mason Loeffler and Peter Schram,” Menicke said. “We have a bunch of young guys running 19-21 minutes for 5k and the dream is to drop a minute or two for each by late October. That team becomes way more dangerous in team scoring.”

    Freshman Norah Morrell competes at Rebecca Farm on Friday. (Matt Weller photo)
  

    Freshman Bulldog, Nathan Sibson, pushes towards the finish line at the Flathead Invite Friday. (Matt Weller photo)
  

    Whitefish senior, Ali Grube, recorded her personal best time at the Flathead Invite on Friday. (Matt Weller photo)