Lady Bobcats win Bobcat Invite

THERMOPOLIS - The Thermopolis Lady Bobcats closed out their homecoming week by winning the Bobcat Invite at Legion Town and Country Golf Course Saturday morning in Thermopolis.

Lady Bobcat coach Brenna Abel was thrilled with her team's performance. "We were mentally prepared for our race," said Abel. "Last week we were in Worland which is a flat and fast course, but our course is unique in that there are so many hills, which provides its own set of challenges. The kids rose to the occasion what with it being a home meet, plus homecoming and the course itself, they were really great."

For the second consecutive week Lady Bobcat senior Jules Ward won the meet and also set a course personal best with a time of 19:48.03. Ward's teammate, freshman McKenna Bomengen, finished second with a time of 21:36. The rest of the Lady Bobcats finished eighth (Tahja Hunt), 13th (Olivia Weyer) and 16th (Stacy Lewis) for a team total of 40 points, which was 28 points better than next nearest competitor Cody.

Coach Abel continued to speak about her runners and how well they've done this season. "Jules (Ward) cut time off compared to last season. She looks great, is running strong and very dedicated. Her dedication to training and running over her career is really shining through," said Abel. "McKenna Bomengen was excellent finishing the race in second and had a really, really strong last mile. Tahja Hunt was eighth and had a fabulous race as well."

She added, "One of the big highlights for us was Olivia Weyer. She ran her fastest time of the season Saturday. She got into the low 23s on probably the most difficult course we've run since Casper Mountain at the beginning of the season; she looked phenomenal. We had big jumps in time from last season. Stacy Lewis knocked off over two minutes and Sean Miller had a huge improvement as well."

After Saturday's big day coach Abel believes it will provide a big boost to her team as well as going against some of the state's best competition.

"Some athletes viewed our course negatively but it comes down to mental preparation and focus because that mental aspect is so important," said coach Abel, "We'll probably have the target on our backs when we run in Powell Friday but it will be fun. The Big Horn Basin has so many strong teams with us, Worland, Cody and Powell and it's great to see them week after week."

Worland

The Worland High School cross-country team also had a strong outing Saturday at the Bobcat Invite. Warrior Porter Harman finished second, while Kelli Holiday was sixth on the day for the Lady Warriors.

"The whole team did very well," said WHS cross-country coach Tanya Kienlen. "I was proud of their effort Saturday. The course was tough; there were a lot of hills to climb. But that's what makes cross-country great, each course is different with their own set of twist and turns. Porter (Harman) provided a boost for our team and that was huge and exciting. Paige Flock on the girls side along with some other girls are really stepping it up for the team to close that gap and move the team up in the standings."

The course for the Bobcat Invite had many hills for the runners to conquer with several runners succumbing to the intensity of the course. "I was pleased that everyone finished the race," said coach Kienlen. "That course is mentally tough and a gut check and we talked to the kids about doing what you're expected to do. That means not making excuses because everyone is running the same course and the playing field is even, all you need to do is step up your game."

Coach Kienlen also talked on the strategy used for Saturday's race. "We didn't focus on our splits like most races. Instead we focused more on our positioning and where we were as far as the other competitors. It was helpful especially for the boys because we said 'Don't let green pass you' and with that we were able to beat Lander by four points," said coach Kienlen.

With one meet left before the regional meet in Douglas coach Kienlen likes the drive from her team. "We had a great workout in the rain on Monday. It helps us to be tougher mentally no matter the weather or course. Everyone is stepping up their game, competing to earn their varsity spot and they've been focused on improving because they know every other team is doing the same," said coach Kienlen.

Friday both Worland and Thermopolis will be in Powell for the Powell Invite starting at 4 p.m. at the Powell Golf Club.

Results from the Bobcat Invite are as follows.

Varsity

Girls

1, Jules Ward, Thermopolis, 19:48.03.

2, McKenna Bomengen, Thermopolis, 21:36.00.

6, Kelli Holiday, Worland, 22:09.18.

8, Tahja Hunt, Thermopolis, 22:26.81.

13, Olivia Weyer, Thermopolis, 23:22.75.

16, Stacy Lewis, Thermopolis, 23:50.59.

17, Brooke Seidel, Worland, 23:57.25.

27, Naibeth Ayungua, Worland, 25:29.09.

28, Paige Flock, Worland, 25:38.38.

29, Aime Robinson, Thermopolis, 25:41.91.

32, Erica Meier, Thermopolis, 26:15.97.

36, Tatum Zimmerman, Worland, 26:40.84.35.

40, Elizabeth Rhodes, Thermopolis, 27:23.00.

47, Elisa Ayungua, Worland, 28:03.66.

58, Jariah Cogdill, Worland, 32:30.15.

Boys

2, Porter Harman, Worland, 18:16.81.

7, Jadon Swalstad, Worland, 18:53.44.

11, Rylan Mocko, Worland, 19:25.18.

14, Tristan Warren, Worland, 19:33.06.

27, Sean Miller, Thermopolis, 20:38.38.,

28, Caleb Fraser, Worland, 20:41.41.

29, Victor Olvera, Worland, 21:01.50.

30, Jaden Mickelson, Worland, 21:09.50.

31, Gabe Webster, Worland, 21:10.24.,

33, Tucker Veal, Worland, 21:13.09.,

41, Jacob Newell, Worland, 21:39.00.,

44, Charles Rishel, Worland, 21:58.25.,

45, Cody Newell, Worland, 21:58.75.,

48, Tyler Hasbany, Worland, 22:16.91.,

51, Braydon Bond, Worland, 22:31.84.,

54, Joe Keller, Worland, 22:44.18.,

55, Francisco De Miguel, Worland, 22:46.78.