Morley claims Foot Locker Western Regional cross country title

by The Daily Inter Lake
| December 7, 2013 9:54 PM

WALNUT, Calif. — Bigfork junior Makena Morley blew away the field at the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships Western Regional on Saturday at Mount San Antonio College, winning the seeded girls race by 20 seconds, crossing the line of the 5-kilometer event in 18 minutes, 6 seconds.

This is the first win for Morley in the regionals. She finished third in 2011 and 2012.

Morley beat her previous best time, 18:07 in 2011, by a second.

Morley is now qualified to run in the national championships, next weekend in San Diego. She finished ninth at nationals in 2011 and 24th in 2012.

No Montana boys qualified for nationals this season, after two finished in the top 10 last year.

Class A cross country champion Anthony Schmalz of Hamilton was the top area finisher, placing 45th in 16:47.4.

Glacier’s Kade McCutcheon was 47th in 16:47.5 and Helena’s Aidan Reed was 52nd in 16:51.2.

Glacier’s Brock Sandry finished 58th in 16:52.5, Flathead’s Sylas Schutt was 65th in 16:58.2 and Bigfork’s Logan Morley finished in 147th in 18:02.9, ahead of teammate Chance Kittle, who was 158th in 18:34.4.

Makena and Logan’s younger sister, Bryn, won the seventh and eighth grade girls 2-mile race in a time of 10:15.2, seven seconds faster than anyone else.

Columbia Falls’ Samantha Mundel finished 33rd in the girls junior 5k, finishing in 21:32.8. James Ratzlaff of Columbia Falls was 94th in the boys senior 5k in 19:08.5.

Glacier sophomore Corinne Hamilton finished 41st in the freshmen/sophomore All-West 5k in 20:44.1. Wolfpack sophomore Logan Harmon was 24th in the boys All-West in 17:27.9.