In the middle of the biggest three-week stretch of meets of the season, Plains cross country teams head east this week for the high-test Bozeman Invitational meet Saturday on the second leg of that three-meet journey.

Staying around Sunday to help with the growing Bozeman Half-Marathon event, coach Jesse Jermyn said his teams will utilize working on the staff at the half-marathon as a means to generate funding for Plains running programs.

Plains harriers began the three weeks of top-flight meets at the Kalispell Invitational at Rebecca Farm Friday and turned in impressive performances. The third of the three big meets the Horsemen and Trotters will be running in is the Mountain West, the grandfather high school meet of all XC meets in Montana, in Missoula coming up Sept. 19.

“We have the three big meets early in the season and then some smaller ones late season,” Jermyn offered. “We hope to be in peak form at the right time, working towards our best times at the State B meet (in Billings Oct. 24).”

In the Kalispell Invite, defending State B champion John Owen Jermyn impressively won fourth place overall competing against the best runners from all high school classes in western Montana, clocking 15:51.66. Class AA runners from Helena and Missoula finished first and second.

Likely drawing future inspiration from this race by being out-raced by nemesis Ethan Walker of Harlem, who sped to third place in 15:46.16, John Owen will have Walker to contend with again later on, hoping to make amends. “It’s a long season,” Jesse Jermyn reminded. “There will be other races. We know better now what we will need to do.”

The third place winner in last year’s State B, Cord Greer ran down tenth place at Rebecca Farm in 16:01.51, another noteworthy finish for a proven competitor.

Jack Cockrell (20:21.52), Finnian Ercanbrack (21:48.05), Riley Geenen (22:24.85), Tyler Barton (22:24.85) and Bryan Lakko (22:32.57) rounded out the Horsemen’s efforts in Kalispell.

Emmy Russell (24:08.69) and Annika Ercanbrack (26:39.95) competed for the Trotters.

“We are all pretty much right where we want to be at this point in the season,” Jermyn said. “We’ve got our marks and we climb from here.”

With the Plains middle school runners, Jace Russell led the way with the boys winning 34th in 10:19.39 and Gracelyn Larsen led the girls taking 35th in 11:34.86.

Louis Jermyn (10:59.53), Mason Marton (11:09.47) and Kael Meaden (12:24.83) for the boys, and Jordyn Albertson (12:19.24), Ashlynn Weedeman (12:35.60) and Pearl Ferlen (14:20.81) were the other middle school runners competing for Plains at Rebecca Farm.