Malta Cross Country 2018

The Malta M-ettes Cross Country team has brought back plenty of experience in 2018, as the squad welcomes back eight runners, and welcomes two new first timers.

The team will be without three runners from last season due to graduation including TaChante Cole, Joanie Sjostrom and Monicha Williamson, who had been with the team all four years of high school.

Cole had been the team's top runner the last couple of seasons, making the Class B State Championship Meet in all four of her years at Malta. Cole finished 20th overall in 2017.

This year's senior class consists on Taylor Gilkerson, Taylor Eggebrecht, Chloe Hunter, and Reese Sjostrom. This year's junior class consists of Kaycee Bond and Jillian O'Brien. The sophomore class consists of Danie Rhodes and Leslie Young.

The team welcomes freshman Nikki Nicholson, who has proven to be an avid runner in many events around the community of Malta.

"She told me that she had ran in some of the Color Runs that we have had over the past couple of years and had done quite well," Malta Head Coach Thea Solberg said. "She also ran in middle school track."

Nicholson has been among the top four runners in practices.

She seems to be coming along well with the practices," Coach Solberg said. "Some kids have missed practices due to vacation but she has been plugging along."

The team also welcomes junior Mira Heitland, a foreign exchange student from Hanover, Germany.

"She has only had a couple of runs with us, but she looks like she is going to be a tough competitor because she has been trained in gymnastics, so she has some strength," Coach Solberg said.

Coach Solberg admitted that Mira still is working on developing her run strength and lung strength, but she is confident that she will be conditioned as the season continues.

"We will give her some training and see what happens," Coach Solberg said.

Fallon Handley returns as the team's Assistant Coach.

Ben Costin is the team's lone manager, but he has also been there to run with the team.

"He asked if he could be a manager with the team and I said, managers normally run with the team and he is out there pushing our top runner, whom this year is Leslie Young."

Coach Solberg went on to say that Young learned a lot in her first season last year.

"Leslie has learned some good things from TaChante Cole and she is really pushing herself," Coach Solberg said. "She was also in track this past spring and learned some things about running. Now she is really pushing herself in practice."

According to Coach Solberg, Young has set some high goals for herself.

"She has a goal that she would like to place in the top twenty at state," Coach Solberg said. "And she also has a goal of seeing if she can catch L'Tia Lawrence."

L'Tia Lawrence of Harlem is one of the top runners in the state, having placed fourth in the 2016 State B Meet and eleventh in the 2017 State B Meet.

Typically finishing second during practice had been O'Brien.

"She has been a top runner over the last couple of years," Coach Solberg said. "As a freshman she was Co-Most Valuable Runner with TaChante Cole."

O'Brien had missed a lot of last year's season due to injury, but Coach Solberg has been impressed with how she has bounced back.

"This year she has come back stronger with some summer running and she also did swim team over the summer," Coach Solberg said.

With a lot of runners unable to run every single practice, Coach Solberg admitted that the next few runners have varied.

"Danie Rhodes and Nikki Nicholson have been in the third position, but it will be hard to see where they finish having a lot more conditioning to do," Coach Solberg said.

Bond, who was another state participant last year, has been another M-ette working hard this summer.

"She came off of doing a couple of fun runs this summer and so she has done a little bit of summer running," Coach Solberg said.

Coach Solberg expressed pride in her team, regardless of where they have been finishing in practice.

"All of them are working hard and getting good conditioning and looking like they are progressing well," Coach Solberg said.

Coach Solberg handed out a goal sheet full of questions to allow the team a chance to challenge themselves.

"It makes you think about things," Coach Solberg said. "A majority of the girls have set goals to finish higher than they did at state. We placed tenth at state out of nineteen teams. This year the goal is to at least place eighth."

The team will be hosting the Malta Athletic Club Cross Country Invitational on Saturday, September 8.

Malta High School

2018 XC Schedule

DATE DAY EVENT SITE

Aug. 10 Friday First Day of Practice Malta HS

Aug. 31 Friday Wolf Point Invitational Wolf Point

Sept. 8 Saturday Malta Invitational Malta

Sept. 14 Friday Fergus Invitational Lewistown

Sept. 17 Monday Shelby Invitational Shelby

Sept. 22 Saturday Havre Invitational Havre

Sept. 29 Saturday Glasgow Invitational Fort Peck

Oct. 6 Saturday Browning Invitational Browning

Oct. 12 Friday Harlem Invitational Harlem

Oct. 20 Saturday State Meet Missoula