Waterfall breaks BV record fourth time

Haylee Waterfall turned in another record-setting run, and this time the Brandon Valley senior accomplished the feat – her fourth this season - on the Hart Ranch Campground course during Friday’s Rapid City Invitational.

Waterfall paced herself to a 13th place finish with her run of 19:50, helping to guide the Lady Lynx to a tie for third place. The Lynx boys were once again led by Britton Elkin, who blazed through the 5,000-meter course in 17:42 for 26th place. Teammate Eli Cheever was right on his heels, crossing the finish line at 17:46 for 27th place. The Lynx boys claimed sixth as a team.

“Wow!” BV head coach Larry Beesley said. “It was a big meet with teams from North Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska, and South Dakota, and on a very difficult course that we have not run on where the wind and the terrain both things made running fast somewhat difficult. I was very happy and impressed with the effort of both teams. The kids took the challenge and really came through with some very good performances.”

Lauren Wells and Kylie Foss raced to 26th and 28th places, respectively. Wells ran the course in 20:24 and Foss clocked in at 20:32. Allison Rief’s 33rd place run of 20:41 and Katie Wentzy’s 55th place effort of 21:12 complimented the team tally. 

“Our one through five gap was at 82 seconds, which is very good in a meet of this size. It’s hard to put kids between us when we are that tightly grouped,” Beesley said. “They used their strength and endurance to move up on the second loop.”

Aiding the BV boys’ sixth-place finish were Thoms Redford (44th, 18:13), Zach Hentschel (57th, 18:25) and Colter Elkin (79th, 18:59).

“This was a great race for these guys,” Beesley said. “I cannot believe how far they have come since the beginning of August. This group does not let their lack of varsity experience hold them back. They certainly look like a very seasoned varsity team and I am impressed with how well these guys have raced the past few meets.”

The Lynx varsity and JV teams compete Thursday at the Watertown Invitational at 4 p.m. It’s the same course the ESD Conference meet will be run on.

“I’m looking forward to seeing where this team stacks up on the ESD course in two weeks,” Beesley said.

 

Rapid City Invite

Girls’ team scores: Laramie, Wyo., 83; Hill City 129; Aberdeen Central 129; Brandon Valley 141; Bismarck, N.D. 149; Custer 155; RC Stevens 159.

Lady Lynx results (5,000 meters, 144 runners): 13.) Haylee Waterfall 19:50; 26.) Lauren Wells 20:24; 28.) Kylie Foss 20:32; 33.) Allison Rief 20:41; 55.) Katie Wentzy 21:12; 65.) Mikaela Birath 21:26; 71.) Natalie Moose 21:47; 77.) Megan Pickering 22:02; 88.) Hannah Sprecher 22:15; 108.) Caitlyn Hanson 23:10; 109.) Hannah Hendrick 23:10.

Boys’ team scores: 1.) Laramie, Wyo. 36; 2.) Bismarck, N.D. 56; 3.) RC Stevens 84; 4.) Custer 115; 6.) Brandon Valley 193.

Lynx boys’ results (5,000 meters, 151 runners): 26.) Britton Elkin 17:42; 27.) Eli Cheever 17:46; 44.) Thomas Redford 18:13; 57.) Zach Hentschel 18:25; 79.) Colter Elkin 18:59; 89.) Jace Christoffer 19:14; 98.) Caleb Klatt 19:23; 113.) Josef Zahn 19:50; 132.) Luke Kocer 20:26; 143.) Dustin Green 21:15.