The Powell cross country team got off to a hot start in Riverton Thursday — literally.

“The temperature was 98 degrees when our kids ran that afternoon and those high temps can take their toll on runners,” said head coach Ashley Hildebrand, adding, “Some kids can handle it, but most can’t.”

Freshman Kinley Cooley wasn’t bothered by the heat at all, finishing first in the girls race in 22:08 — only seconds off the time she ran at the Buffalo Invitational last week. Cooley was in her second race ever, having missed the first meet of the year due to COVID protocols.

Kabrie Cannon (23:17) and Brynn Hillman (23:34) were second and third with Jordan Black, Gabby Thomas, Gracie Wolff and Liz Peterson finishing close behind on the results sheet. The field featured just one competitor from Riverton. 

In the boys’ varsity race — which was more evently balanced between Powell and Riverton — PHS junior Daniel Merritt finished second behind Riverton’s Kaden Chatfield. Riley Schiller took third, Breckin Streeter was eighth, Juan Torres ninth, Ben Whitlock 10th, Justin Hobbs 12th and Caiden Gehrts 13th.

Hildebrand was impressed with her team’s effort in the heat, and has been very pleased with improvements by Streeter, a sophomore in his first season of the sport. Streeter’s finishing time was 20:58.

“He’s coming along really well and working really hard in practice,” the coach said.

Riverton got the best of the Panthers in the team standings, with their top five finishes adding up to 23 versus Powell’s score of 32.

Most teams were in Ethete at the Chief Nation Cross Country meet, which offered a preview of the state championship course. PHS joined the Riverton Invite to get a good look at the conference championship course, scheduled for Oct. 14, Hildebrand said. “We opted to go to Riverton, and then do a full practice on Saturday.”

In the boys’ JV race, Kyle North finished in first, despite nursing an injury this season.

“It was a pleasant surprise,” Hildebrand said.

Colton Decker was close behind in third, Stuart Shoopman fourth, Jace Bohlman sixth, Jon Hawley eighth, Ben Hawley 11th, Drew Valdez 12th and Paul Cox 14th.

In the girls’ JV race, Salem Brown placed second in her first race of the season.

The teams head to Sheridan Saturday for the Michelle Ludwig Invitational. They’re also preparing for the Powell Invitational, the final regular season match of the year for the Panthers.

“It’s fast and flat and we usually get a lot of teams involved,” Hildebrand said. 

Twelve teams have already signed up for the race.

Girls

1. Kinley Cooley 22:08, 2. Kabrie Cannon 23:17, 3. Brynn Hillman 23:34, 5. Jordan Black 25:21, 6. Gabby Thomas 26:21, 7. Gracie Wolff 27:23, 8. Elizabeth Peterson 34:13

Boys

2. Daniel Merritt 19:05, 3. Riley Schiller 19:05, 8. Breckin Streeter 20:58, 9. Juan Torres 21:10, 10. Ben Whitlock 21:29, 12. Justin Hobbs 22:10, 13. Caiden Gehrts 22:57