The Bombers women's cross country team took on elite competition at the Fort Dodge Invitational, where they placed 14th out of 28 teams, most of which hailed from Class 4A. The women ran hard on the state championship course, with several athletes posting solid times against a tough field.

Leading the way for Ballard was Annika Larson, who continued her stellar season by finishing 15th overall with a time of 19:15.50.  Her performance was a personal record on the state course, improving by 47 seconds from her time last year.  Larson's steady improvement has made her a key runner for the team heading into the championship season.

Brynn Wilson also had a solid showing, finishing 72nd with a time of 20:49.00.  Head Coach Scott Barth praised her training and expressed confidence that Wilson is on the verge of a breakthrough performance as the season progresses.  Following closely were Raya Miller (91st, 21:38.00) and Kya Hermann (98th, 21:50.90), both running strong races.  Grace Grundmeyer rounded out the top five with a time of 22:51.50, finishing 111th.  Nora Showman (23:17.30) and Raegan Loewe (23:49.30) completed the team's efforts, finishing in 137th and 145th place, respectively.

Coach Barth shared his thoughts after the meet: "It was a beautiful night to run at the state course in Fort Dodge.  The competition was tough, consisting of predominantly Class 4A teams.  I felt both teams ran hard and gave great effort.  The girls powered through to a respectable 14th place finish."

The team was without key runner Ava Richardson, who is working on rebuilding her iron levels.  Coach Barth is optimistic about her return, noting that Richardson has the potential to be their No. 3 runner, which will significantly boost their team score in future meets.

Looking ahead, the Bombers will compete in the Raccoon River Conference (RRC) Meet on Tuesday, October 15, in Winterset, with races starting at 4:00 PM.

FORT DODGE INVITATIONAL WOMEN'S TEAM SCORES (TOP 10)

1. Johnston, 48

2. Ankeny Centennial, 80

3. Valley, 127

4. Ankeny, 144

5. Waukee Northwest, 161

6. Dowling, 212

7. Dallas Center-Grimes, 214

8. Waukee, 234

9. Indianola, 238

10. Mason City, 307

14. Ballard, 409

FORT DODGE WOMEN'S INDIVIDUAL TIMES

15 Annika Larson, 19:15.50

72 Brynn Wilson, 20:49.0

91 Raya Miller, 21:38.0

98 Kya Hermann, 21:50.90

111 Grace Grundmeyer, 22:51.50

137 Nora Showman, 23:17.30

145 Raegan Loewe, 23:49.30