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Henry Ballinger (left), participating in his first crosstown cross country meet as a Helena High Bengal, placed third in the boys race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course.
Helena High and Helena Capital cross country athletes descended on Bill Roberts Golf Course Wednesday evening for the final XC meet before state next week.
Helena Capital seniors Brody Romano (right) and Keiran Boyle (left) finished one-two in the boys crosstown cross country race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course.
Henry Ballinger (right), participating in his first crosstown cross country meet as a Helena High Bengal, placed third in the boys race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course. His teammates Dylan Hill, Elliot Stimpson, Henry Sund and Jake Matthews finished fourth through seventh.
Helena High junior Bria Plant finished second in the girls crosstown cross country race on Wednesday with a time of 21 minutes, setting a new personal best in the process. Plant also had the best individual finish of any Bengal, boy or girl, in the meet.
Helena Capital senior Emma Compton won the girls crosstown cross country race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course with a time of 20 minutes, 20 seconds. She anchored a Bruin team win.
Helena Capital seniors Brody Romano (right) and Keiran Boyle (left) finished one-two in the boys crosstown cross country race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course.
Henry Ballinger (left), participating in his first crosstown cross country meet as a Helena High Bengal, placed third in the boys race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course.
Helena High and Helena Capital cross country athletes descended on Bill Roberts Golf Course Wednesday evening for the final XC meet before state next week.
Helena Capital seniors Brody Romano (right) and Keiran Boyle (left) finished one-two in the boys crosstown cross country race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course.
HELENA — For the first time in their high school cross country careers, the seniors on Helena Capital’s girls team captured a crosstown victory.
It came on the back of senior Emma Compton’s race win, which was, according to her, her first crosstown victory.
“It felt pretty good,” Compton, who finished with a time of 20 minutes, 20 seconds, said. “It was such a fun atmosphere. I’m friends with so many of the kids – they really motivate me…I’ve never done this before, so it’s an exciting feeling.”
Compton accomplished the feat with her grandparents, an aunt and uncle, and parents looking on from the closely-mowed grass just outside the width of orange flags that marked the winding route through Bill Roberts Golf Course.
“Their support means everything,” Compton said of her family.
The Bruin girls bested Helena High 21 placement points to 37 with five runners in the top-8 and six in the top-10. Cadence Hatten and Greta Standish-McKay finished third and fourth with times in the low-21-second range, while Destiny Vogl crossed the line 15 seconds later in fifth.
“It was no small feat, Helena High is a really good team, but our girls have finally realized their potential,” Capital coach Anna Doran said. “They’ve put in the work from the summer all the way through the season.”
Helena Capital senior Emma Compton won the girls crosstown cross country race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course with a time of 20 minutes, 20 seconds. She anchored a Bruin team win.
“They had this as one of their goals at the beginning of the season, so I was really happy to see them achieve it.”
Moments later, the Capital boys put the finishing touches on a strong Bruin effort.
Brody Romano and Keiran Boyle, running in their final crosstown meet, placed one-two with times of 16:44 and 16:53. The pair remained close the entire race, sticking to their game plan.
“That was perfect,” Boyle said. “That’s exactly how we planned on running that race. We went out with an idea of about 5:10-5:15 for that first mile. We ended up running 5:12…Brody got out in front of me on one of the hills and we just kinda let it roll.”
“That’s the first time in my races – four years at Capital – that I’ve been able to kick [at the end] like that. It was a really good experience for me to know that my body can do that.”
Helena Capital seniors Brody Romano (right) and Keiran Boyle (left) finished one-two in the boys crosstown cross country race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course.
The Helena High boys won the team battle with 25 placement points to Capital’s 47.
Henry Ballinger (17:01), Dylan Hill (17:02), Elliot Stimpson (17:17), Henry Sund (17:18) and Jake Matthews (17:20) crossed the line within 19 seconds of each other and in order from third through seventh.
Henry Ballinger (right), participating in his first crosstown cross country meet as a Helena High Bengal, placed third in the boys race on Wednesday at Bill Roberts Golf Course. His teammates Dylan Hill, Elliot Stimpson, Henry Sund and Jake Matthews finished fourth through seventh.
Romano and Boyle possess two of the top-15 times in Class AA heading into the state meet next week.
The duo has been running cross country together since seventh grade, according to Boyle, and has maintained a friendship throughout the years.
Running together makes them better, and add in Romano’s sunglasses, which he says makes him at least 15 seconds faster, and you’ve got a winning combination.
“We really tried to work together that first mile, mile and a half,” Romano said. “I ended up taking it by a little bit, but I think it was that beginning and working together that made that race what it was for both of us.”
Helena High’s Bria Plant captured the highest individual finish by a Bengal on Thursday with a second place result in the girls race.
Plant, a junior, ran a 21-minute race to set a new personal record, and made her move about half-way through the race to solidify her top-two finish.
“It went well,” Plant said. “I’ve been having a hard time competing and I felt like I finally got over that mental block. I finally went out and competed. I was happy with my race.”
Helena High junior Bria Plant finished second in the girls crosstown cross country race on Wednesday with a time of 21 minutes, setting a new personal best in the process. Plant also had the best individual finish of any Bengal, boy or girl, in the meet.
“Today was one of those days where I felt good, so I used that to my advantage.”
Plant said she’s looking for a top-30 result at the state meet and is striving for 25th or better.
Other Helena High girls finishers were Hadyn Garza (6th, 21:31), Alivia Thunstrom (7th, 21:33), Ella Irey (10th, 21:45) and Solveig Mohr (12th, 22:09).
Ballinger, who was participating in his first crosstown for Helena High after transferring from Capital in the summer, took home a third-place finish with a time of 17:01.
He currently ranks just behind Romano in the Class AA standings with a season-best time of 16:25.9, good enough for 16th, heading into the state meet.
Email Daniel Shepard at daniel.shepard@406mtsports.com or find him on Twitter @IR_DanielS.
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