Lovell harriers show great improvement at second meet

The Lovell High School cross-country team made their way Friday to the TA Ranch, a scenic course for the runners with the Big Horns providing a beautiful backdrop. Coach Caleb Sanders said the runners “showed a lot of improvement this week,” adding, “Some of it was due to the cooler temperatures, and some of it came from athletes having positive attitudes about racing.”

Coach Sanders took five boys to compete on varsity. Senior David Durfee competed in his first race of the season and finished first with a time of 18:06, his second-fastest 5K. He placed 15th overall. Sanders said Durfee has shown “a lot of maturity and growth over the years” and is the team’s top runner.

Senior Owen Hill ran another consistent race with a time of 19:36, placing 34th. His time spent competing in soccer has helped him become the second-fastest runner on the team, Sanders said. Hill is very intentional about his approach to running, and the coaches are happy with his success so far this season, Sanders added.

Senior Jay Mayes ran a solid race and showed significant improvement from the previous week. He placed 41st with a time of 21:37. Behind him was his brother, Sam Mayes, who wasn’t feeling his best but still turned in a good performance, finishing with a time of 21:53.

Senior Jaxen Clark placed 44th with a time of 22:44. He ran a strong first two miles and will continue working on finishing his race at the same pace, Sanders said.

On the JV team, freshman Oscar Garcia ran a personal record of 20:08. He was named Boys Athlete of the Week. He is very close to finishing under 20 minutes, and Coach Sanders said Garcia is very comfortable with his racing style. He likes to start moderately and increase intensity as the race goes on, passing many other runners throughout the race.

Freshman Isaac Sanders ran a half marathon six days before this race and won it. He didn’t let that slow him down, coming out with a time of 20:47 in his first high school 5K.

Junior Hudsen Mickelson ran well in his first race of the season and came out as the team’s fifth-fastest boy.

Gage Pillow broke 30 minutes, and Coach Sanders was very pleased with him. He is starting to make a breakthrough in his conditioning.

Other JV boys results:

 Ethan Hendershot 30th, 22:18

 Rick Jensen 31st, 22:22

 Grant Rose 32nd, 22:23

 Taevan Henton 52nd, 28:52

Coach Sanders had one girl compete on varsity at this course. Senior Elana Schilthuis ran her fastest 5K ever, finishing in 21:33 for 18th place. Coach Sanders said she started faster than normal, but because she always finishes fast, it proved to be the right strategy for her. She was named Girls Athlete of the Week, and the coaches were very impressed with her performance.

Other JV girls results:

Candace Walker 31st, 25:54 — her second time in her running career finishing under 26 minutes.

Atlee Sanders 42nd, 30:17

The team has been focusing on recognizing their racing style and experimenting early in the season. The coaches hope this will help athletes feel more confident in their preferred style by the end of the season.

The high school and middle school teams will head to Riverton today (Thursday) to compete in the Berry Bryant/Kyle Johnson Invitational at the Riverton Rendezvous site. The girls middle school race will start at noon, followed by the boys middle school at 12:30 p.m., girls junior varsity at 3 p.m., boys JV at 3:30, girls varsity at 4:30 and boys varsity at 5.