Niwot cross country runners compete in Invitationals

Niwot senior Jenna McCaffrey is having a break-through season.

“Jenna’s a tenacious runner,” Head Coach Kelly Christensen said. “She’s getting her swagger back.”

In the five races she’s run this season, McCaffrey has finished among the top 15 in each one, her best a fourth-place finish at the RE-1J District Meet on Sept. 14. Last weekend, McCaffrey finished 11th in a field that included many of the state’s top runners at the Metro State/Mountain Vista Invitational.

“I think her body’s finally adjusting to the weight training and increased mileage,” Christensen explained. “Her fitness level is strong.”

McCaffrey has been the Cougars’ fastest girls in each of the last two meets, as sophomore Maggie Smith rests a mild case of bursitis in her knee.

“Maggie is fine with her fitness and training,” Christensen said. “We’re just staying on the safe side with her knee.”

At Fairview High’s Pat Patten Invitational Sept. 23, McCaffrey led her team to a sixth-place finish, with 155 team points. Individually, McCaffrey was seventh overall, with a time of 20 minutes, 9 seconds. Freshman Joelle McDonald (21:17) finished 29th, while Sophomore Clair Jepson (21:55) was 41st, and senior Clair Gillett (22:21) was just behind her, in 45th.

On the boys side, Niwot finished seventh overall at the Pat Patten. Junior Kenny Lang was the fastest Cougar, finishing in 17 minutes, 24 seconds, which was good for 15th place. Junior Ethan Steiner finished 31st, and Benjamin Bi (18:23) was 41st.

On Oct. 1, the Niwot cross country squad took part in the Metro State/Mountain Vista Invitational held on a grass course in Denver’s Washington Park. The meet featured many of the state’s top teams in Class 4A and 5A, including Cherry Creek, Broomfield and Battle Mountain.

For the girls, McCaffrey’s time of 20 minutes, 13 seconds was just eight seconds out of the top ten, and three seconds ahead of Lyons senior CeAnn Udovich, the first-place medalist at the RE-1J District Meet. Freshman Joelle McDonald (21:03) was 35th overall, and senior Claire Gillette (21:21) was 39th. The girls team finished eighty overall, with 205 team points.

In the boys race, Niwot junior Kenny Lang finished in 30th, with a time of 17 minutes, 32 seconds. Juniors Oskar Wells (17:48) and Ethan Steiner (17:48) placed 46th and 47th respectively. The boys team finished 10th overall, with 253 team points.

Niwot’s next meet is the Northern League meet at North Lake Park in Loveland, on Oct. 7.

Pat Patten Invitational (September 23)

Boys Team Scores —Monarch, 43; Silver Creek, 61; Boulder, 88; Fossil Ridge, 118; Fairview, 127; Centaurus, 137; Niwot, 164; Denver East, 169

Niwot Individuals — 15. Kenny Lang (Jr.), 17:24; 31. Ethan Steiner (Jr.), 18:05; 38. Oskar Wells (Jr.), 18:18; 41. Benjamin Bi (So.), 18:23; 52. Jack Volf (So.), 19:02; 54. Matthew Funk (Sr.), 19:05; 57. Tommy Stager (Sr.), 19:20; 59. Peter LeCavalier (Jr.), 19:27; 61. Luke Robinson (Fr.), 19:34

Girls Team Scores — Monarch, 55; Fairview, 77; Boulder, 90; Fossil Ridge, 95; Centaurus, 114; Niwot, 155; Thompson Valley, 165; Denver East, 168; Silver Creek, 272

Niwot Individuals —7. Jenna McCaffrey (Sr.), 20:09; 29. Joelle McDonald (Fr.), 21:17; 41. Claire Jepson (So.), 21:55; 45. Claire Gillett (Sr.), 22:21; 51. Courtney Smoljan (Sr.), 22:34; 53. Grace Martinson (Jr.), 22:41; 58. Caitlin Hyers (Jr.), 22:57; 67. Elise Gillett (Fr.), 23:49; 69. Mallory Finley (So.), 24:14

Metro State Roadrunner/Mountain Vista Invitational (October 1)

Boys Team Scores — Palmer Ridge, 50; Mountain Vista, 69; Fort Collins, 94; Cherry Creek, 107; Arapahoe, 133; Dakota Ridge, 176; Broomfield, 210; Denver South, 224; Battle Mountain, 225; Niwot, 253; Durango, 289; Lyons, 297; Valor Christian, 341

Niwot Individuals — 30. Kenny Lang (Jr.), 17:32; 46. Oskar Wells (Jr.), 17:48; 47. Ethan Steiner (Jr.), 17:48; 75. Benjamin Bi (So.), 18:28; 105. Peter LeCavalier (Jr.), 18:50; 110. Matthew Funk (Sr.), 18:57; 121. Jack Volf (So.), 19:06; 127. Luke Robinson (Fr.), 19:16; 158. Ben Klingbeil (Fr.), 20:09; 189. Rayan Elahi (Fr.), 21:50; 199. Jason Fetters (Sr.), 23:14; 207. Jensen Douillard (So.), 25:00; 213. Warren Bartlett (Sr.), 29:50

Girls Team Scores — Broomfield, 46; Mountain Vista, 47; Battle Mountain, 106; Palmer Ridge, 132; Cherry Creek, 158; Durango, 175; Dakota Ridge, 205; Niwot, 205; Fort Collins, 250; Denver South, 252; Valor Christian, 273; Lyons, 317;

Niwot Individuals — 11. Jenna McCaffrey (Sr.), 20:13; 35. Joelle McDonald (Fr.), 21:03; 39. Claire Gillett (Sr.), 21:21; 75. Courtney Smoljan (Sr.), 22:20; 82. Elise Gillett (Fr.), 22:30; 84. Grace Martinson (Jr.), 22:34; 93. Caitlin Hyers (Jr.), 22:56; 118. Jeri Wilcox (Jr.), 23:28; 122. Erika Timbang (So.), 23:43; 131. Mallory Finley (So.), 24:17; 134. Claire Jepson (So.), 24:29; 148. Cailin Sullivan (Jr.), 25:32; 149. Sage Marten (Jr.), 25:32; 150. Lauren McHugh (Jr.), 25:42; 151. Mary McLean (Fr.), 25:45; 153. Emma Steiner (Jr.), 25:57; 159. Naomi Bastow (Sr.), 26:53;