After a long summer of preparation, the Powell High School cross country team is ready to lead the pack in 2021. 

The Panthers’ roster features 25 runners — 17 boys and eight girls — and several are returners from last year’s teams, which both finished 11th at state. PHS kicks off the season Friday in Billings, Montana, at a varsity invitational.

The annual Billings race, which features a larger field of student-athletes from across the area, is a great place for the Panthers to start their season.

“I’m excited about it,” PHS head coach Ashley Hildebrand said. “It’s such a great meet and is huge. It’s a flat, fast course, so kids who have run over the summer will likely put up good times.”

Over the summer, Hildebrand held group runs, where student-athletes could voluntarily run with their teammates ahead of the fall. In addition, several Panthers tracked their mileage using the Strava app. A few even entered local races, including Jace Bohlman and Riley Schiller, who competed in a half-marathon in Meeteetse.

All-in-all, Hildebrand believes all 25 runners will be well-prepared for the season.

“They put in some good work over the summer,” she said.

On the girls’ side, Powell returns Kabrie Cannon, who was consistently the Panthers’ top female runner a year ago. With a time of 21:24.4, she finished 14th at state. 

PHS will also get experienced runners from its track and field team, with Brynn Hillman and Gracie Wolff joining the cross country squad. And Hildebrand is also excited about the incoming freshman class, which includes Kinley Cooley, Jordan Black and Salem Brown.

Daniel Merritt was the top boys’ runner a year ago and finished 28th at state with a time of 18:35.9. Other returners include Cole Frank, Bohlman and Schiller, all of whom competed well in 2020. And freshmen Paul Cox, Liam Taylor and Juan Torres headline the group of newcomers.

On both the girls’ and boys’ teams, the kids are motivated. In the offseason, Hildebrand compiled the entire records of Powell’s cross country times, putting together a “top performers” list. Both Cannon and Merritt are on that list, and Merritt’s older brother, Alan, currently holds the No. 1 spot for the boys’ team.

“Daniel’s trying to unseat his brother,” Hildebrand said. “Some of the younger kids say they want to get on that list, so hopefully that can motivate them to get some faster times.”

Overall, the coach’s early-season goal is that the runners improve their individual times and get more conditioned. She thinks the Billings meet will be a good start for her team, which she expects to be competitive all season long.

“I think we’ll have a nice team,” Hildebrand said.