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Montana State Cross Country Championships
Author: MT43 News Sports Reporter
Article Published: 10/30/2026 Volume: 5 Edition: 17Montana State Cross Country Championships
MT43 News Sports Reporter
There were tears. Tears of elation after a personal best time that eclipsed the old one. Tears of pride from parents who watched their kid push themselves to the limit in a difficult sport. Tears of finality for a group of seniors knowing they ran their last race as a Broadwater Bulldog. Tears of disappointment for poorly timed illness that sank high hopes of medals and trophies. Tears of gratitude for coaches that build up kids with hard work and support. Tears of love between a group of kids more a family than a team.
The Montana state cross country championships took place Saturday, October 24th at Amend Park in Billings. More than 1100 runners (613 men and 565 women) representing 120 schools from all classes descended on the course, which also hosted the Billings Invite to start the season. The 5K distance started for both boys and girls in Montana in 2017, with this year’s course the fastest in that era. Coupled with beautiful weather, it made for some impressive numbers and records.
The Lady Bulldogs finished in 4th place out of 29 Class B scoring teams with 229 points. Forty-two schools were represented by 218 runners in the ladies' Class B race. Senior Kyla Meissner was one of the Bulldogs feeling ill, which prevented her from mounting a defense of her state title from last year, but she persevered to still land on the podium in 11th. Her last race as a Bulldog wasn’t what she hoped for, but a career that started with her winning her very first high school race and includes 10 more wins, four all-state finishes, the four fastest times in school history, along with the school record, is one worth celebrating.
Junior Elaine MacDonald ran a time of 20:22 to place 20th, which is her third fastest time ever and an improvement of almost two minutes from the start of the season on the same course. The trio of freshman Kathryn Six (21:18PB), sophomore Kay Crusch (22.30PB), and freshman Kensley Sangray (22.35PB) were all truly amazing at state, recording their personal best times and completing the scoring members of the team with finishes of 40th, 78th, and 80th, respectively. Combined, they shortened their times by eight and a half minutes from the start of the season! Sophomore Addy Mosher (23:54) and junior Alexis Fryer (23:51) rounded out the ladies’ team in 123rd and 126th.
The Bulldog men’s team finished as a team in 9th place with 346 points among the 32 teams with enough qualifying runners to tally a team score. The last race of the day saw the largest field of 239 runners representing 42 Class B schools. Also feeling unwell, senior Dallas Fligge crossed the line first for the Bulldogs in 17:35 to place 42nd. Despite only running two seasons of high school cross country, Dallas finishes as Broadwater’s third fastest 5K runner behind only Nolan Flynn and Jack Dolan, and slightly ahead of current assistant coach Louis Ingalls, always a goal for these Bulldog harriers.
Sophomores Clayton Rice (17:45PB) and Isaiah Lapsley (17:50PB) showed how strong the future of the program is with two outstanding performances, both clocking impressive personal bests going sub-18 and finishing 51st and 53rd. Juniors Gavin Johnson (18:54) and Urijah Duede (19:04PB) placed 95th and 105th, combining to erase almost six minutes from the start of the season. Senior Rylan Hoveland (19:39SB) finished his seventh season of cross country in 133rd, while sophomore Mason Johnson (20:12PB) completed his first in 169th. Way to finish the season strong, Bulldogs!
Enough cannot be said about how longtime coach Brooke Dolan makes running hundreds of miles fun in a sport that gets little attention or accolades. Her legacy at Broadwater High, whether on the course in the fall or the track in the spring, is unmatched and appreciated by those who toe the line for her.
Article Images
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PhotoCredit: Lee Nelson
Image 1 Caption: The Lady Bulldogs finished 4th at state: (left to right) Kyla Meissner, Kathryn Six, Addy Mosher, Kay Crusch, Alexis Fryer and Elaine MacDonald (not visible is Kensley Sangray)
Photo Credit: Lee Nelson
Image 2 Caption: The Bulldogs at the start of the state meet, where they finished 9th: (left to right) Dallas Fligge, Clayton Rice, Isaiah Lapsley, Gavin Johnson, Rylan Hoveland, Urijah Duede (in the background is Mason Johnson)
Photo Credit: Lee Nelson
