Libby's Watson sets new cross country record

Cabinet View Golf Club saw a record-setting performance at the Libby Invitational cross country meet last week.

The Loggers hosted the annual meet that features girls and boys teams from Class AA and A in western Montana and Idaho.

Sophomore Cody Watson placed ninth overall in the boys varsity race with a time of 16:46 and set a new 5K record, beating his previous record-time of 17:12, set last fall.

Senior Rowen Sherbo placed 28th for the Loggers, which placed 11th among 14 schools. Sherbo ran the 3.1-mile course in 17:25.79.

The Loggers easily bested county rival Eureka, scoring 232 points while the Lions had 351.

Head coach Brittany Katzer said there are 24 high school students and 22 middle school students on the team. 

"The program is continuing to grow! We implemented a 10-week summer running plan and can already see the hard work paying off," Katzer said. "At the high school level, we had kids completing up to 350 miles this summer and middle school kids completing 150. We have quite a few returning athletes, but also some brand new runners to the program. It's been exciting to watch them come together and work toward a common goal of of self improvement as well as improvement as a team. I see a lot of positive rental with this group of kids!"

Katzer said the team also has a new coach on staff, assistant Melanie Courteau.

"Jacob Thomas (former Libby xc runner) and Andre Mehan are also volunteering for us," Katzer said. "Their help is very appreciated because we have a big coach to athlete ratio. It allows us to supervise better and also to coach the varying ability levels."

Sophomore Colter Anderson was third for Libby, 42nd overall, in 18:03.75. Freshman Jake Rusdal was 84th, senior Matteo Gibbs was 88th, senior Charlie Weber was 94th and junior Silas Moore was 95th.

The Troy Trojans had a pair of runners finish, including junior Dmitrii Walenter, who was 86th in 21:18.56, and freshman Kai Brownell, 87th in 21:51.54.

Class AA schools Flathead and Glacier led the team race. The Braves 59 points gave them a six-point win over the rival Wolves.

Flathead's Robbie Nuila won the race in 15:40.25.

Sandpoint, Idaho was third overall.

In the girls varsity race, Class AA Glacier edges Timberlake, Idaho, 56-59. Post Falls, Idaho senior Kaylynn Misner won the race by more than 18 seconds in 18:31.13.

Libby freshman Capri Farmer led the Lady Loggers with a 19th place finish in 21:17.22. Classmate Alli Clemons was 29th in 22:06.96.

Sophomore Hailey Misner was 65th, sophomore Irene Benjamin was 67th, freshman Lillian Bailey was 73rd. Seniors Taryn Greene and Taylor Greene were 75th and 76th, respectively.

As a team, the Lady Loggers were 10th.

Troy saw junior Jaylee Meyers place 59th in 24:14.94. Sophomore Jolene Foutch was 70th, junior Jenika Meyer was 72nd and junior Shelby Cole was 77th.

In the boys 3,000-meter middle school race, Libby had four in the top 10 and won the team race, besting Thompson Falls. Leading the way was seventh-grader Micah Peterson, who was second overall, sixth-grader Waylon Katzer was sixth, classmates Caleb Peterson and Myles Miller followed in seventh and 10th, respectively.

In the girls 3,000-meter middle school race, Libby had two runners in the top six. Sixth-grader Kayleigh Desch was second and seventh-grader Ellory Anderson was sixth.

The meet also saw the unveiling of a new timing system. Katzer, Rodd Zeiler and activities director Nik Rewerts sought a digital timing system and with a $29,255 grant from the LOR Foundation, the school was able to purchase a FinishLynx wireless system. It also opens the door to Libby being able to host other races, too.

"The grant included a stipend so they could train others in the community to use it," Katzer said. "We will have divisionals in Libby this year, so it'll be great to have a reliable timing system!"

The next event for Libby and Troy is the Flathead Invitational at Rebecca Farm at 10 a.m. Friday.

    Libby freshman Capri Farmer runs at the Libby Invitational cross country meet Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. Farmer finished 19th. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)
  

    Troy junior Jaylee Meyers runs at the Libby Invitational cross country meet Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. Meyers finished 59th. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)
  

    Troy junior Dmitrii Walenter runs at the Libby Invitational cross country meet Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. Walenter finished 86th. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)