A top-three finish by eighth-grader Lexi Erickson paced the International Fall girls cross country team in the chilly weather to place second at Thursday’s Hial Pike Cross Country Invitational at the Falls Country Club.

Of the 12 teams with enough finishers to count in the standings, Grand Rapids won the meet with 78 points, followed by the Falls (96), Warroad (103), South Ridge/Cherry (108) and Hibbing (164) in the top five.

Broncos head coach Paul Hjelle said he was excited about the Falls girls finishing ahead of Warroad.

“They ran well overall to beat Warroad,” Hjelle said. “Warroad’s really tough.”

In the individual competition for first, Erickson was at the front of the pack throughout the race and momentarily held the lead.

Mesabi East’s Megan West finished first on the 4,000-meter course in 15 minutes, 32.29 seconds, followed by Victoria Alexander of Lake of Woods in 15:43.09 and Erickson coming in third in 15:52.77.

“I thought Lexi went out well and held her own against two of the top runners in Section 7A,” Hjelle said. “I think maybe the wind was tough on her.”

The only other Falls girl to place in the top 20 was junior Sydney Raboin, who came in 13th in 16:20.28.

“(She) probably would be very honest and say it probably wasn’t her best race of the year,” Hjelle said. “I think maybe she let Lexi get too far away, or maybe she didn’t go out hard enough.”

The three other Broncos who counted in the team standings included: junior Amy Auran, 26th in 17:16.34; senior Amber Harms, 31st in 17:27.61; and senior Rachel Foss, 32nd in 17:33.75.

Falls boys fifth

In the boys competition, the Broncos placed fifth out of 10 teams with enough finishers to count in the standings.

Grand Rapids won with the top score of 49, followed by Hibbing (52), Virginia (74), Mesabi East (122) and the Falls (143) rounding out the top five.

A boys runner from Mesabi East also recorded the top time when Danny Radtke finished first on the 5,000-meter course in 17:12.61.

The best individual finish by the Broncos came from senior Marco Griffith, who placed 21st in 18:43.58.

“It was pretty intense,” Griffith said. “The wind and the cold really got to us, but it was pretty fun still — a pretty good race.”

Two other Falls runners finished in the top 30. Senior Cade MacKay placed 28th in 19:17.13, while junior Wyatt Ulrich came in 30th in 19:23.79.

All five Broncos who counted toward the team total finished in the top 40 individually. Senior Logan Veillieux was 33rd in 19:34.87, while sophomore Cole Tatsak came in 40th in 19:54.62.

“We really want to stay as a group and get a really good team score...,” Griffith said. “The times (Thursday) were kind of slow, but it’s also really chilly.”

The Broncos next compete Tuesday at the Iron Range Conference meet.

Hial Pike Cross Country Invitational

GIRLS

Team Scores: Grand Rapids 78, International Falls 96, Warroad 103, South Ridge/Cherry 108, Hibbing 164, Ely 166, Lake of the Woods 166, Dryden 179, Trek North 191, Virginia 219, Eveleth-Gilbert 236, Fort Frances 319.

Top 10 individuals: 1. Megan West, Mesabi East, 15:32.29; 2. Victoria Alexander, Lake of the Woods, 15:43.09; 3. Lexi Erickson, International Falls, 15:52.77; 4. Amy Bianco, Ely, 15:55.35; 5. Sarah Hamrin, Trek North, 15.57.80; 6. Lindsay Fast, Warroad, 15.59.02; 7. Elyssa Peterson, Greenway/Nashwauk-Keewatin, 15:59.63; 8. Gracelynn Otis, South Ridge/Cherry, 16:05.66; 9. Gretta Brunelle, Warroad, 16:07.11; 10. Sadie Hamrin, Trek North, 16:09.93.

International Falls runners: 3. Lexi Erickson, 15:52.77, 13; Sydney Raboin, 16:20.28; 26. Amy Auran, 17:16.34; 31. Amber Harms, 17:27.61; Rachel Foss, 17:33.75; 56. Shelby Wolden, 18:50.92; 83. Lexi Edwards, 19:45.22.

Indus runners: 66. Maria Lewis, 19:11.62; 100. Samantha Hervey, 20:59.92.

BOYS

Team Scores: Grand Rapids 49, Hibbing 52, Virginia 74, Mesabi East 122, International Falls 143, Ely 169, Eveleth-Gilbert 173, Dryden 191, South Ridge/Cherry 222; Warroad 227.

Top 10 individuals: 1. Danny Radtke, Mesabi East, 17:12.61; Wyatt Becicka, Virginia, 17:21.07; 3. Wil Maki, Hibbing, 17:30.88; 4. Sam Johnson, Mesabi East, 17:30.37; 5. Jason Bibeau, Grand Rapids, 17:44.22; 6. Austin Stefanich, Greenway/Nashwauk-Keewatin, 17:45.57; 7. Keenan Francios-King, Grand Rapids, 17:46.11; 8. Colin Cottingham, Grand Rapids, 17:46.17; 9. Simon Holmes, Virginia, 17:57.40; 10. Reed Melicher, Eveleth-Gilbert, 18:10.86.

International Falls runners: 21. Marco Griffith, 18:43.58; 28. Cade MacKay, 19:17.13; 30. Wyatt Ulrich, 19:23.79; 33. Logan Veillieux, 19:34.87; 40. Cole Tatsak, 19:54.62; 45. Corin Wenger, 20:06.12. 54. Cody Tatsak, 20:21.32.