Morley claims Class B title, sets state record

With her confident stride and relaxed, steady pace, Makena Morley made winning a state cross-country title look like a walk in the park.

Not only did the Bigfork freshman running phenom take the Class B girls individual crown with over a minute to spare, she also broke a 15-year-old state meet record with a blazing fast time of 17 minutes, 44.32 seconds on the three-mile course at the University of Montana Golf Course.

“She ran a great race,” said Bigfork head cross-country coach Sue Loeffler. “Anytime you win a state championship is a great day.”

Morley went into the race with a goal of breaking the 17-minute barrier, which she flirted with at last month’s Mountain West Classic. She turned out a time of 17:10.4 for an easy victory at that race, which was held on the same course as the state meet.

Although Saturday was not Morley’s day to dip into the 16-minute range, she was satisfied with her performance.

“It felt really nice to win state,” Morley said. “I just told myself to have fun. It was great having the support of so many people in the crowd.”

After battling a sore leg — which caused her to miss the Western B Divisional Championships the previous weekend — Morley ran into more trouble in the hours leading up to the state race.

“I didn’t really feel good before the race,” Morley said. “My stomach kind of hurt.”

Although Morley suspects that a prerace sports drink might have been to blame, she was also quick to admit that she had a hard time controlling her nerves before the starting gun went off.

“I’m always nervous (before I race),” she said. “I tried to tell myself that it was just like any normal race, but it’s just not.”

Loeffler was impressed with how well Morley dealt with the expectations associated with being so talented at such a young age.

“For a freshman, I feel she handled the pressure of being a top runner well, and she didn’t let it affect her goal of winning state,” Loeffler said. “Sometimes I think we forget she’s 14 years old. People look at her as just a runner, not as a kid.”

Morley took the lead from the get-go, and although she was briefly challenged during the first mile, the gap between her and second-place finisher Selene Johnson of Big Timber grew quickly.

“I think it’s tough to get up mentally for every race when you have to run against yourself,” Loeffler said.

Proud father Steve Morley — who served as Makena’s training partner over the summer and during part of the fall season — knows his daughter has plenty of time to reach whatever goals she has in mind for her high school career.

“I’m super proud of her,” Steve said. “Even though she didn’t run the time she wanted, this leaves her more to strive for. I think it’s a great outcome.”

Teammate Chelsea Olson finished 17th for the second year in a row with a course-best time of 20:16.74. Although the Bigfork junior — who took top honors at this year’s divisional meet — finished just two spots shy of achieving All-State honors, Loeffler was pleased with her performance.

“Chelsea was disappointed with coming up short, but she ran a great race, and she ran with a lot of heart,” Loeffler said.

In their first state championship appearances, freshman Hailey Nissen and junior Tori Quirk finished 80th and 81st, respectively, with times of 23:20.38 and 23:23.18.

On the boys side, Loeffler was happy with her athletes’ performances at the state meet and throughout the season.

“I felt they ran good races with good times, and they were pleased with their results,” Loeffler said.

Freshman Chance Kittle led the way for the Vikings, finishing 97th with a time of 19:27.12. Lane Thole was next, clocking a time of 20:02.3 and placing 126th. Lavin Bakker ran a 20:10.86 and Tyler Kirby ran a 24:51 to place 134th and 179th, respectively.

Kit Mayer of Loyola Sacred Heart took the Class B boys title with a time of 15:42.11.