It was a great moment for Panther runners Saturday at the cross country state championship meet in Missoula. The Jefferson High girls’ team placed third, its first podium finish in years. And the boys’ squad extended its run of top-five team finishes, placing fifth this year after taking the team championship in 2023.
Cross country has a long winning tradition at Jefferson High: Look around the North Gym, and most of the banners you’ll see from over the decades are for cross country. Congratulations to Coaches Karson Klass and Jaimie Stearns and the team members that put in the miles to make this such a successful program.
For the girls, Peyton Stearns led the way with an 8th-place finish in 19:50.6; a year ago, as a freshman, he was 13th. Isabella Warren placed 30th, in 21:20.5, Rebekah Warren 32nd, 21:30.1, Maylea Dawson 53rd, 27:36.5, Natalie Russ 78th, 23:22.4, Lily Oelkers 88th, 23:42.8, and Sidni French 100th, 24:11.7.
