Boys 11th at Class 3A competition in sheridan; coach says athletes improved all season

The Powell High School girls cross country team claimed fourth place in the Class 3A State Championships in Sheridan Saturday. The Powell boys finished 11th.

Jackson Hole High School won the girls race with 48 points, followed by Cody High School with 81 and Star Valley with 84. PHS, which took third in the conference meet, edging Cody by one point, scored 136 points.

PHS head coach Cliff Boos said the Lady Panthers ran well during the event, held in “ideal” conditions on the Veterans Administration Medical Center grounds. There was no wind, the temperature was warm and the course was in excellent condition, he said.

Cody had a runner at state who did not compete the previous week, Boos said, and another who had a much better showing. That led CHS to top its Park County rival at state.

“Other kids show up that you didn’t expect. That’s the way it works sometimes. It’s just hard to know sometimes,” Boos said. “The girls ran quite well. Getting fourth at state was good, I feel.”

Star Valley High School won the boys event with an impressive showing, scoring 34 points. It had three of the top five runners across the finish line. Jackson Hole High School was second with 86 points and Cody High School took third with 118 points. Powell scored 265 points.

“Our side is just so solid,” Boos said. “So many good schools on this side of the state.”

Powell ran on the state meet course in the second week of the season.

“Everybody had a marked improvement ... so that was encouraging,” he said. “I was really impressed with how they ran. I was really satisfied with how everyone ran.”

Senior Gretchen Morretti finished 17th in 20:45.25, wrapping up her one and only season of cross country competition. Boos said she was a surprising and welcome addition to the team this season.

“She’s quite a good runner,” he said.

Senior Bailey Sanders took 23rd in 21:07.76 and had a very impressive showing in her last race, Boos said. Sanders ran much better on the course compared to how she did on it earlier.

Sophomore Teo Faulkner was 25th in 21:19.65. Sophomore Kylie Cannon claimed 28th place in 21:37.60. Freshman Emma Andreasen was 49th with a time of 23:03.46 and junior Danna Hanks was 63rd with a time of 24:06.76.

Newcastle High School junior Calbi Ausmann won the race with a time of 18:30.18. Mountain View sophomore Hannah Behunin was second in 18:59.58, followed by Star Valley senior Hannah Demler in 19:18.61, Rawlins junior Montana Belford in 19:28.05 and Jackson Hole sophomore Anna Gibson in 19:32.22.

Senior Ben Wetzel concluded his high school career with a 34th-place finish in 18:38.69 to pace the Panther boys.

Wetzel ran three years of cross country and had a remarkable junior season, improving his times by a minute or so every race. This year, nagging pain in his foot hampered his performances but he was able to lead the PHS boys in their final race.

Junior Alex Aguirre came in 50th with a time of 19:10.61. Sophomore Matthew Waite came across the line 55th in 19:20.46. Freshman Jesse Erickson took 61st place in 19:39.03. Junior Tyson Wages came home in 65th place with a time of 19:53.01. Freshman Aaron Smith claimed 76th place in 20:15.96.

The Panthers will have a deep team next fall, Boos said, and other talented young runners who performed well with the middle school team will join them.

“I’m thinking all those young guys coming together and working, we should have a good season,” he said. “It’s good to watch it develop, watch them get it together.”

Boys take more time to develop, Boos said, while girls often hit their stride earlier.

Cody High School junior Brody Smith won the individual title in a time of 15:45.50, followed by Star Valley senior Cody Peck in 15:54.80, Buffalo senior Matt Scarlett in 16:20.89, and two more Star Valley runners, freshman Shane Henderson in 16:22.19 and senior Nic Demler in 16:32.68.