Weiser cross country runners post solid times in first meet

Weiser High School’s cross country team opened the 2019 season on Saturday against a crowded field of runners at the Jimmy Driscoll Invitational at Bishop Kelly High School in Boise.
 A total of 14 schools made the trip, including a mix of 3A, 4A and 5A varsity and JV teams. The weather was sunny and on the hot side for the 5,000-meter event.
 Scott Hale, the second-year head coach for Weiser, said the team did well on times, despite the hot temperatures at racetime. The girls varsity started about 11:30 a.m. and the boys started at noon.
 “I’m really happy with where the team is now. I was comparing times of this meet with last year’s and was very happy to see that most of them did much better this time around,” Hale said. “The heat always is a factor, but they did well despite it.”
 Hale said the team still needs some distance and overall conditioning for another week or two and then the training focus will shift to getting faster.
 For the varsity boys, Borah’s Nathan Green set a fast pace in the 5K, winning the race with a time of 15:29:78. He was one of two runners to finish in under 16 minutes. Borah also placed first in the team standings.
 Junior Tyler Walker led the Wolverines with a time of 20:06.45. Returning starter and senior Nate Lattin was not far behind and finished in 20:27.15. Lattin’s best time in 2018 as a junior was 19:08.8.
 Weiser senior Michael Despain and freshman Ben Hathhorn finished the race with times of 20:42.07 and 20:47.82, respectively.
 Also finishing in the top 100 for Weiser were Colton Foster (93rd) with a time of 21:59.61 and Colyer Chandler (99th), who ran the race in 23:32.58.
 The Weiser girls team lost its top distance runner and top five state finisher Abbey Shirts to graduation last spring. A total of 12 girls came out for the team last month, a mix of experienced and inexperienced competitors.
 Senior and returning varsity runner Ellie Walker paced the Weiser girls, finishing with a time of 24:15.21. Walker’s best time in 2018 and her personal best was 22:06.7. Teammate Kiearra Hoobery, a sophomore, was not far behind and crossed the finish line in 24:18.73.
 Also finishing for Weiser were Libbie Rynearson (26:49.09), Stephanie Bodgett (27:01.28), Ashlyn Walker (27:09.87), Ellie Eames (28:21.05) and Emily Abramson (28:22.89).
 Eagle High School’s Lizzie Dildine posted the fastest time for the girls on Thursday. She took first place with a finish of 18:11.58. The Eagle varsity girls had the best team score of the afternoon.
 Also representing the Snake River Valley Conference, Homedale sent a varsity squad to compete in the Jimmy Driscoll Invitational.
 The Wolverines will host the Weiser Invitational on Thursday, Sept. 5, at Rolling Hills Golf Course. The course is considered by many cross country coaches to be one of the most challenging 5Ks in the Snake River Valley Conference. It is especially challenging if the temperatures are above 90 degrees.