Sandpoint XC, track alums shine at next level
From left: Angie Brass, SHS girls cross country and distance coach, Ciera Bailey, Garrett Pierce and Matt Brass, SHS boys cross county and head track coach, pose for a photo at the 2019 NAIA National Cross Country Championships in Vancouver, Washington. Bailey and Pierce, along with Brady Nelsen, had successful collegiate cross country seasons this spring.
(Courtesy photo)
Brady Nelsen competes in the 3200 at the Sandpoint Open on June 13, 2020. Nelsen just wrapped up a successful freshman season for the Lewis-Clark State College cross country team.
(File photo by DYLAN GREENE)
A trio of Sandpoint High track and cross country alums have impressed at the collegiate level this spring.
Brady Nelsen, a freshman, and Ciera Bailey, a junior, will serve as alternates for the Lewis-Clark State College cross country team when the squad competes in the NAIA Cross Country National Championships today in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Typically, the cross country season is held in the fall, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic a condensed 2020-21 season was run this spring.
The men's cross country team for the Warriors enters the championship ranked eighth in the nation, while the women are No. 9. Lewis-Clark won the Cascade Collegiate Conference title to secure an automatic bid to nationals.
In 2019, the LCSC men claimed third at nationals, the best finish in program history, while the women took 18th.
Nelsen and Bailey both finished 33rd at the conference championships. Bailey ran a 5K time of 19:07, while Nelsen had an 8K time of 26:51. Both times were season bests.
Garrett Pierce, a junior, competed in two events for the College of Ozarks cross country team this spring. As a freshman and sophomore, Pierce was named first team all-conference.
At the Ouachita Baptist Invitational on Feb. 13, Pierce placed third with a 27:23.
Pierce also took fifth with a 8K time of 28:41 at a meet hosted by Lyon College on March 6.
Pierce's season came to an abrupt end following that event when the College of Ozarks decided to pull out of the NAIA.
