MEEKER | The Meeker High School cross country team had a busy week on the road, competing twice in just a few days. On Tuesday, Oct. 7, the Cowboys traveled to Rifle for the Rifle Invitational, where they captured first place as a team, before heading to Grand Junction on Friday, Oct. 10 for the Warrior Lincoln Park Classic Mountain States Challenge.
At Rifle, Meeker dominated the team standings with a score of 57 points, placing all five scorers within the top 30 overall. Sophomore Bradley Conrado led the way with a fifth-place finish in 18 minutes, 51 seconds, followed closely by freshman Landon Damitz in sixth at 19:03 and sophomore Ryan Hanberg in seventh at 19:10. Senior Cameron Hanberg placed ninth in 19:33, rounding out a tight lead pack for the Cowboys. Sophomore Ashton Tapia sealed the team title, finishing 30th in 22:26.
Non-scoring runners also turned in solid efforts, with Jackson Steele (22:51), Remy Broussard (26:02), and Asa Scofield (27:02) all contributing to the team’s depth and consistency.
On the girls’ side, senior Haylee Steele ran strong for the Cowboys, placing 24th with a time of 25:57.
Head coach Marty Casey said she was proud of his team’s focus and execution throughout the day in Rifle.
“I am so proud of this group! Everyone ran with confidence and purpose,” Casey said. “Really great pack running from our top four boys, with only about a 40-second spacing at the finish. They knew this would be a fast course compared to Aspen, so they worked together to push the pace.”
Casey said Conrado has continued to set the tone for the team while helping the younger runners find their rhythm.
“Bradley continues to work hard every week,” she said. “He started just a bit slower at Rifle but knew how to find his speed. Landon and Ryan worked well together from the start, and Cameron was never far behind, kept his focus, and put in a great performance.”
Conrado said his race-day approach and lessons learned from last season contributed to his success.
“Last year during the Rifle meet I unfortunately ate too much on the bus, resulting in a major side-stitch,” Conrado said. “Luckily, I remembered not to eat this time and ran fairly well, getting myself a PR at that meet. After our previous success at the Aspen meet, scoring third as a team, our morale was high leading to our team’s success at Rifle. Because the Rifle meet was also like a hard workout, I think that also could have led to my 18:01 finish in Grand Junction, along with the support of my teammates, family, and coaches. My goals for the Craig meet this weekend are to hopefully get a new PR, although the Craig meet isn’t nearly as fast a course as Grand Junction.”
Ryan Hanberg said the teamwork and course conditions made both meets memorable and motivating.
“At Rifle, I think the race was great, and while it wasn’t a PR for me, it was a great opportunity to run on a golf course, such as the ones at Craig and regionals, and to push Landon towards a new PR,” Hanberg said. “It was amazing to get a team first place, and I think that a lot of that was Brad, Landon and I pushing each other in the first part of the race to start fast and push ourselves. While we did all separate, it helped us all get a good start and led to our great placings.”
“At Grand Junction, what contributed the most to my PR was my mindset to just get out there and run my hardest, which was partly because of the rain and partly because of the course change,” he said. “I stayed laser-focused throughout the whole race, and it paid off, leading me to a new PR. For the upcoming meet in Craig, I hope to continue pushing my limits, staying in the sub-19s and keeping a good group with Brad and Landon. At regionals, my ultimate goal is to take the team to state, while possibly qualifying myself.”
Following their team victory in Rifle, the Cowboys traveled to Grand Junction for a highly competitive meet against large-school competition. The event, originally scheduled at Lincoln Park Golf Course, was moved to Central High School and Long Family Memorial Park due to rainy conditions.
“It rained all afternoon and evening, so the route was comprised entirely of sidewalks and pavement,” Casey said. “The competition was still very strong, with the largest field of runners we have encountered this season. We also had some impressive times; most of the team set new personal records, despite the rain.”
Sophomore Ryan Hanberg led Meeker in Grand Junction with a breakout race, finishing in 17:46 to place 101st overall. Conrado followed in 18:01, with Damitz clocking 18:26 as the team’s third scorer. Tapia (20:49) and Steele (20:57) rounded out the top five, giving Meeker a total of 671 points and 25th place overall in the team standings.
Seniors Broussard (23:49) and Scofield (25:10) ran as non-scorers but showed steady improvement from previous weeks. On the girls’ side, Steele continued to make progress, running 24:59—nearly a full minute faster than her time at Rifle.
Steele said both meets offered fast conditions and great opportunities for improvement.
“The Rifle meet was really great—we saw a strong team with the boys that day and many personal bests throughout the whole team,” she said. “Both of the races this week were really fast and flat courses, so we were expecting to set some personal bests out of it. Running in the rain on Friday changed a lot and helped me move faster through the race.”
As a senior, Steele said she’s appreciating every moment as her high school cross country career winds down.
“It doesn’t feel like the end is even near, but I’m glad to run with all my teammates and thankful for all of the parents and the community for coming to the races to see us run throughout the years,” she said. “My favorite part about running with this team is that you never know what adventure we’ll run into. I’ll remember getting to run with my younger brother before I’m ready to move on to the next chapter.”
The Cowboys will be back on the road this weekend for the Moffat County Invitational in Craig, held at the Yampa Valley Golf Course.
“As a fairly flat golf course meet, we hope it will help prepare us for regionals at Lincoln Park the following Thursday,” Casey said.
With only one meet left before regionals, the Cowboys are carrying strong momentum into the final stretch of the season. After a first-place team finish in Rifle and a solid performance against large-school competition in Grand Junction, Meeker will look to continue improving this weekend in Craig as they prepare for the regional championships next week.
Senior Cameron Hanberg pushes hard during the Rifle Invitational as he helps lead the Meeker High School boys cross country team to a first-place finish.