Charvoz ends season in style at Nike meet

BOISE - Sandpoint senior Tony Charvoz, one of the top two runners on the Sandpoint boys team who was unable to compete at the varsity level for transfer eligibility rules, capped his season by clocking an 18:19 to lead the Sandpoint boys team Saturday at the Nike Cross Country Regional meet in Boise on Saturday.

"He was really excited," said head coach Matt Brass, noting it was the first time all year he got to run in an actual varsity race. "Because he ran between No. 1 and 2 on the boys team time-wise, we said from the beginning that the Nike meet would be like his state meet."

Senior Megan Bartlett was the only of the 18 Sandpoint runners to compete in the Open Division, finishing 29th out of more than 170 runners from around the Northwest trying to qualify for the national meet. The top runners from Idaho, Washington, Montana, Oregon, Alaska and Hawaii were on hand at Eagle Island State to qualify. Bartlett missed qualifying, despite running a respectable 19:17 in the elite field of runners.

"Everyone was pretty tired from the season," said Brass of his team, "It was a good way to end the season."

Ethan Kopiecki ran a 19:31 for the Bulldogs, eclipsing his previous best by more than 30 seconds. Kat Vardell was the top female finisher in the team race, clocking a 20:55 to lead the Sandpoint girls.