The Ranger boys varsity team took the hilly Spearfish course first and had a good start leading into the first of four big hills on the challenging course.  Andy Coy was in the initial chase pack that followed Dominik Robinson of Campbell County, who is the #18 ranked cross country runner in the nation by DyeStat.com.  Kyle Alexander and Nash Koel sat in at the back of the larger secondary pack that included another Ranger Thomas Nimick.  The race was a hard fought battle of mind over matter, as the hilly terrain and top-flight competition put great stress on the mind and body.  Andy Coy crossed the line first for the Rangers in 3rd place, ahead of 4th place runner and Class AA favorite Alec Espeland of Pierre.  Nash Koel, Kyle Alexander and Thomas Nimick were the next in line for the Rangers.  Koel, Alexander and Nimick all improved their time from the previous week's race in Douglas.  This group has excellent potential and will be exciting to watch the rest of the season.

 

In the JV races, Cassidy Hart far exceeded expectations again this week, placing 14th in the JV race.  Cassidy broke 19 minutes in her first 4000 meter race ever; quite the accomplishment for the 8th grader. Cassidy joined the lead pack from the gun and ran three great hills to battle all of the way to the end of the race.  Jesus Meza competed in his first race as a Ranger and did well, finishing in 55th place.  Meza ran a well-paced race and will improve with more racing and training experience.  Forrest King ran his first 5k race and improved his performance from last week as well.  Forrest will see continued improvement with his strong work-ethic.

 

The Rangers will be all over the map this week, as the middle school, JV and Girl's Varsity will compete at the Belle Fourche Invitational on Thursday.  The Boy's Varsity team will compete in the Augustana Meet of Champions, which features elite Regional competition.

Check www.heartofthehillsrunningclub.com for pictures, results and information on upcoming meets.