Mallams, Coco, Donovan and Miller make All Conference list

There wasn't a whole lot of noise on the bus ride down to the Northwestern A Championship in Ronan.

Even though 22 boys and 14 girls were physically prepared for the competition, there may have been uncertainty in the minds of most.

Last season at this meet, the Bulldogs escaped with a third on the girls side and a fifth on the boys side. This season the goals were higher, and all that was left to do was to run the race.

The boys were first to toe the line, and in less than 18 minutes everyone in attendance realized that the Whitefish team was a different one than last season.

Ian Mallams and Drew Coco led the green and gold charge to the finish chute with their places of third (16:29) and fourth (16:41), earning All Conference honors for their efforts.

It was a typical run for Mallams and Coco, said cross country coach Bill Brist. Having two runners so near the front definitely helped the Bulldog boys in the team scoring.

It took just over a minute to get an idea how the Bulldogs would finish as a team. It was a blanket of yellow as the rest of the Whitefish team sprinted to the finish. Runners three, four and five finished within the span of a second in 15th, 16th and 17th positions.

And if that wasn't enough, Joseph Alexander and Austin Troiano finished within seconds in the 19th and 20th positions.

Last season, the boys had one finisher in the top 20. This season, all seven finished there. Maybe more impressive was that 11 of the top-30 finishers were from Whitefish.

"I was extremely proud of how these young men competed today," Brist said. "We may not have won the meet, but we certainly had a large presence in the competition."

The Lady Bulldogs were up next, and they were primed for their race after watching the boys run.

Freshman Beth Donovan went up against a couple of the state's better runners. What she may not have been prepared for was going up against a couple of hornet bees, which stung her twice in the ankle during the race.

Most runners may have packed it in right then. Donovan stopped, removed the bees and started after the front runners. She ended up finishing fourth in 20:03 — good enough to earn All Conference honors.

Clare Miller had a fantastic race, finishing in the top-seven to earn All Conference as well. Miller has improved quite a bit this year, Brist said.

Less than a 30 seconds later, the rest of the team's scorers crossed the finish line. Lauren Kuennen, Janna Rozar and Anne Danczyk finished in 11th, 12th and 13th places in the three-mile race to put all five Lady Bulldog scorers in the top 13. Loie Russell-Templeton and Cassie Schell both finished in the top 20 as well.

"I think both these teams have given notice that they are ready to compete at the state championships, which will be held in Missoula on Saturday," Brist said. "Last season, the girls team had a great meet, ending up with an eighth-place finish."

This season, they'll fight it out with Miles City, Lewiston and Sidney for a chance at a state trophy.

The boys team goes into the state championships looking to show that they have the opportunity to finish high in the standings as well. Last season, they finished 17th at the state championship.

Ronan, Dillon, Browning and Harding should battle it out for the boys championship, leaving Whitefish to outrun Laurel, Havre and Hamilton for the final top-five spot.

"Anything better than 17th would be a improved finish, but it would be nice to see this team continue to surprise everyone with their competitiveness," Brist said.

Girls results — Whitefish second place with 47 points; 4, Beth Donovan, 20:03, All Conference Team; 7, Clare Miller, 20:46, All Conference Team; 11, Lauren Kuennen, 21:17; 12, Janna Rozar, 21:18; 13, Anne Danczyk, 21:21; 17, Loie Russell-Templeton, 21:51; 19, Cassie Schell, 21:58; 25, Natalie Kearns, 22:39; 33, Megan Shaver, 23:20; 40, Carly Hendrix, 24:43; 42, Ashley Hustwaite, 25:22; 43, Holly Cullen, 25:27; 47, Mary Kohnstamm, 25:58; 48, Stephanie Woodbeck 26:02.

Boys results — Whitefish second place with 55 points; 3, Ian Mallams, 16:29, All Conference Team; 4, Drew Coco, 16:41, All Conference Team; 15, Kellen Bodily, 17:43; 16, Blake Bjornson, 17:43; 17, Jacob Fern, 17:44; 19, Joseph Alexander, 17:48; 20, Austin Troiano, 17:50; 23, Michael Harrison, 17:57; 28, Nick Donovan, 18:12; 29, Erik Anderson, 18:12; 30, Dylan Rice, 18:21; 35, Dan Holland, 18:41; 36, Jon Cameron, 18:50; 41, Joey Guerri, 19:08; 43, Patrick McGunagle, 19:22; 53, Brandon Karschnik, 20:59; 54, Luke Knight, 21:15; 55, Jared Barton, 21:16; 57, Shane Hanson, 21:30; 58, Gentry Darkenwald, 22:59; 60, Erik Swanson, 23:34.