DELTA — The Montezuma-Cortez High School girls cross-country team finished fourth out of a field of nine Western Slope teams at the Delta Invitational at Confluence Park on Saturday, Sept. 2.

"It was a good start to our season," MCHS head coach Dave Dillman said. "I was glad to see all of them (MCHS) meet or exceed their target times. And they should only get better as the season progresses."

MCHS was led by junior Julie Christenson who finished 28th out of 54 girls. She clocked 23 minutes, 50 seconds. Holly Smith finished right behind Christenson for 29th place with a time of 23:53.

Sara Snyder finished in 35th with a clocking of 24:18. It was her first cross-country meet ever. Chesleigh Keene placed 38th with a time of 24:44. Jessica Millican came in 41st in 26:20. Becca Whitehead was sidelined with an illness and did not compete.

"Millican showed a huge improvement in her running from last year," Dillman said. "She improved her time by more than two minutes from September, 1999."

Dillman said Millican was very happy with her first effort of the season. He said that she was particularly pleased that no one had passed her in the final 200 meters.

This year’s Regionals is set for Confluence Park on Oct. 21.

"This race gave the runners a chance to see the course and also provide them with a benchmark for improvement. Since the topography, altitude, running surface, and distance change so much from race to race it is hard to get a handle on how much they are improving from week to week other than the time trails we ran on our track. Racing on the same course at the end of the season will be to show us exactly how much they improve. I like to have each runner notice a tangible improvement so she can enjoy the feeling of a job well done," he commented.

Rising to a challenge from within will serve these ladies throughout life, according to Dillman.

"I wish more MCHS students would give themselves an opportunity to experience the joys of athletics. In the case of Jessica Millican, you have a girl who has a small frame but a huge heart. And she is not afraid to mix it up a little by running aggressively. It’s fun to watch her go," Dillman added.