Flathead’s Ben Perrin Runs to State Championship; C-Falls Boys Win Team Title
Glacier runners finish 2-3 behind Perrin in AA boys race, Polson's Frissell wins second straight Class A girls championship
By Andy Viano
Ben Perrin completed his perfect year and joined his two older brothers as Class AA state cross country champions, winning the season’s final meet at the University of Montana Golf Course in Missoula on Oct. 20.
Perrin, a senior at Flathead High School, completed the 5K course in 15:43.60, not his fastest time of the year but more than enough to hold off a pair of challengers from crosstown rival Glacier. In winning a state title, Perrin matches his brothers Jake (2015) and Zach (2012). Ben won all eight races he entered in 2018.
The next state champion from Kalispell may well have finished right behind Perrin on Saturday in Glacier junior Simon Hill. Also from a family of accomplished runners — Hill is the brother of two-time state champion Annie Hill — Simon ran his fastest time of the year by more than 20 seconds (15:55.79) in Missoula to cross the line in second. Teammate Aren Alexander-Battee, a senior, was third in 15:59.12.
Glacier narrowly missed a team medal, finishing fourth just one point behind third-place Billings Senior. Bozeman won the boys crown for the 11th year in a row.
In the girls race, Flathead sophomore Tori Noland-Gillespie was the top finisher from Kalispell, finishing just shy of all-state honors in 13th place (19:08.61). Teammate Meaghan Fisher finished 22nd and Sadie Wilson 26th for the Bravettes, who were fifth as a team. Missoula Hellgate claimed the girls title.
Meanwhile, in Class A, Columbia Falls won its first boys cross country championship since 2009 behind a trio of underclassmen all-state finishers. Junior Joe Lamb (3rd), sophomore Seth Umbriaco (4th) and sophomore James Role (11th) helped the Wildcats score 76 points and comfortably land the team title ahead of Hardin (107) and Laurel (110).
Northwest Montana produced another state champion in the Class A girls race where Polson senior Beatrix Frissell won her second straight individual title in 19:02.57. Whitefish also provided a pair of top-six finishers in seniors Jade Greenberg (4th) and Ella Greenberg (6th). The Bulldogs were second in the team standings behind state champion Hardin.
Bigfork’s Anya Young earned all-state honors for the fourth year in a row, finishing eighth in the girls Class B race, while Eureka was third as a team on the boys side.
COMPLETE RACE RESULTS