Jamie Mountain
The black-and-gold could be seeing a lot more gold this season if its first race of the NorWOSSA season was any indication of what’s to come.
The Muskie cross-country running team shone brightly with many great performances at the season-opening SSSAA Time Trials in Thunder Bay last Wednesday.
As a team, the senior girls nabbed gold in finishing in four of the top five spots while the Novice boys’ squad claimed silver.
“I was really pleased with all of the results in T-Bay this week,” Muskie coach John Dutton told the Times on Thursday.
“This has been our toughest week of training so far this season. Monday and Tuesday’s practice were very challenging, so I knew we were heading to T-Bay with a lot of tired legs and sore muscles.
“But our kids responded to the challenge and we had some very encouraging results from all age groups, both boys and girls,” he lauded.
Trent Wilson had the top showing for the Muskies last Wednesday in Thunder Bay, topping the Novice boys’ 4K race with a time of 15:50.
He was followed by Caden McGinnes in third (17:33), Maverick Morrisseau in 11th (19:07), and Jackson Marchant in 16th (20:06).
In the junior girls’ 5K, Montana Plasky wound up third (27:07) with Emma Toriseva right behind (27:25).
Greta Fedoruk, who generally was the top performer at races for the Muskies last season, got off to another great start this year in winding up second in the senior girls’ 6K with a time of 32:30.
She was followed by Tori Toriseva (33:15), Ashlyn Beck (33:44), and Jaida Norris (34:41).
Taylor Meekis wound up ninth (37:25) while Alacea Yerxa finished in 11th spot (38:14).
In the junior boys’ 5K race, meanwhile, Corbin Riches placed ninth (25:33) while Matthew Watts was 11th (27:27).
And in the senior boys’ 6K, James Furlong had the top showing for Fort High in placing ninth with a time of 28:19.
He was followed by Ben Olson in 17th (34:25) while Braydon Christiansen wound up 24th (37:40).
The Novice girls’ race was halted after only 2K because of lightning, but at that point in the contest it had been a strong showing for the Muskies.
Alexia Gate was comfortably in first place with Leah Seguin right behind, while Chloe Dolyny was in fifth and Arianna Hyatt was 10th.
“We have a large and enthusiastic team this year, a great mix of kids who all make a contribution to the overall confidence level among the athletes,” Dutton lauded of his squad.
“And yesterday’s results clearly show the depth of talent we have on our team, and just how well all of the hard work in our training sessions is paying off. “We had top five finishes in every age category and I believe we had an incredible 11 athletes achieve this feat,” he recalled.
“The Novice girls’ race was stopped after 2K because of the severe thunderstorms, but when the sky cleared, it was the Fort Frances girls who chose to join the Novice boys and rerun their race.
“A coach can’t ask for more from his runners,” he added.
Dutton said that the biggest challenge at the course in Thunder Bay is the terrain. Although it doesn’t have many big hills, the course is a continuous series of small dips and rises that make it very difficult for runners to maintain a smooth and uniform stride length.
“Unfortunately, we will not get another chance to practice on the course until the NWOSSAA championships [on Oct. 22-23] and it is all but impossible to duplicate these conditions in Fort Frances,” he conceded.
The Muskies are slated to resume NorWOSSA running action tomorrow at the annual Evergreen Classic in Kenora, which is a race that presents challenges that they won’t encounter anywhere else this season.
But Dutton is confident his runners will overcome any adversity that may lie ahead.
“The course is very steep, with lots of hills, lots of rocks and stumps, making this our toughest run of the season,” he stressed.
“Our biggest challenge in Kenora is not usually the competition, but the course itself.
“In spite of this, our runners look forward to the challenge and I am anticipating a lot of inspired performances,” he predicted.
Fort High then will compete at the Hial Pike race in International Falls next Tuesday (Oct. 8) before heading to Dryden for the annual “Turkey Trot” next Thursday (Oct. 10).
