MSU-Northern harriers off and running

You have to start somewhere. And the Montana State University-Northern cross country teams did just that last Friday in Helena.

The Lights and Skylights made their debut as a Frontier Conference cross country program at last Friday's Carroll College Early Bird Meet. And while the finishes weren't what the teams were hoping for, it was an exciting time for Northern, the runners and head coach Chad Spangler as the Lights and Skylights ran in the first-ever collegiate meet.

"It was highly educational for our very young team," Spangler said. "We were able to see, clearly, some of the differences between us and the top runners. Those differences ranged from technical aspects like stride length and breathing patterns to the broader aspects like team work and preparation. We were able see what it takes."

On the women's side of the race, Northern finished in fifth place as a team, with a score of 138. The Skylights ran close together with Rachel Nelson as their top finisher. Nelson finished in 19:12.52 to place 38th overall. McKenna Barkus and Breck Don, both of Havre, finished right behind Nelson. Barkus ran a 19:23.50 and Don came in 19:52.05.

Amelia Clark, Alissa Borlaug and Courtney Cota rounded out the scoring for Northern. Clark finished in 42nd place, Borlaug was 44th and Cota was 45th.

The Northern men finished in sixth place as a team. The Lights ended their first meet with a team score of 138.

Individually, former Blue Pony Jamie Lieberg was MSU-N's top finisher with a time of 15:11.02, good enough for 41st place. Box Elder grad Will Ketchum was next for Northern, finishing in 43rd place with a time of 15:24.56.

Northern also got a 46th-place finish from Alex Williams, while Justin Seevers placed 47th and Andrew Potter came in 49th.

"Since Friday, we've been able to digest the experience a little and, while I feel like we still have a long way to go, I am encouraged by the attitude the team brought to practice this morning," Spangler said. "It's clear that they want to take what we've learned and keep getting better. So, we're going to keep driving, a little smarter and little stronger."

The Lights and Skylights will be back in action Saturday when they compete at the Montana State University Invitational in Bozeman.

Carroll Early Bird Meet

Men's Scores

Carroll 29, Spokane CC 32, Rocky Mountain 89, Great Falls 103, UM-Western 137, MSU-Northern 138.

MSU-N Times

Jamie Lieberg, 41st, 15:11.02; Will Ketchum, 43rd, 15:24.56; Alex Williams 46th, 18:28.57; Justin Seevers, 47th, 18:58.34; Andrew Potter, 49th, 20:32.28.

Women's Scores

Carroll 15, Spokane CC 49, Great Falls 82, Rocky Mountain 105, MSU-Northern 131.

MSU-N Times

Rachel Nelson, 38th, 19:12.52; McKenna Barkus 39th, 19:23.50; Breck Don, 40th, 19:52.05; Amelia Clark, 42nd, 20:18.02; Alissa Borlaug, 44th, 21:04.96; Courtney Cota, 45th, 21:38.38.