Junior high harriers have successful season

The Columbia Falls Junior High School cross-country team recently wrapped up its successful fall season. A record number of 31 kids ran cross-country. Of that, 19 were new runners. In all, 16 boys and 15 girls went out for the fall sport.

Columbia Falls attended meets hosted by Kalispell, Columbia Falls, Mountain West Classic in Missoula, Whitefish, and Glacier High School. Race distances ranged from 1.3 miles in Missoula to 2 miles in both Columbia Falls and Whitefish.

The girls and boys teams had great depth of talent, evident by having three different girls and three different boys leading the squads in different races. Fifth-grader Kimberly Peacock (who is a fifth-grader at Ruder Elementary School) led the team in Glacier and Kalispell, while seventh-grader Danielle Schwalk was the top runner for the team in Missoula and Whitefish.

Eighth-grader Allie Folks had the team’s best mark in Columbia Falls. Eighth-grader Winfield West finished first for the team in Kalispell and Whitefish. Eighth-grader Sam Summers led the team in Columbia Falls and Glacier, and seventh-grader Gabe Knudson was tops in Missoula.

“The average runner’s improvement over the season was about one minute, which is outstanding for a mile and a half race,” coach Jim Peacock said.

Every Columbia Falls runner improved throughout the season. The team was coached by Peacock, Janet Somerscales and volunteer Cami Casazza.

“Our goals for the team were to enjoy the sport, to have personal and team success, and to get fit,” Peacock said. “We met those goals, and this was an outstanding group of kids. Overall this year, the Columbia Falls Junior High had a great team of runners that learned to race, showed improvement and, most importantly, had fun.”