RAPID CITY – Using only the four necessary runners to score as a team, the Flier girls cross country placed fourth in the State Class A Girls’ meet held at Hart Ranch in Rapid City and had their junior distance runner Faith Wiese come into the chute first in front of all other runners.
Fourth place is the highest in school history for a girls’ cross country team and Wiese’s win is also new to the Fliers. The foursome of Wiese, Calla Wiese, Josie Hamilton and Kiley Westberry scored 100 points. Sioux Falls Christian took the team title with 15 points using three runners that followed Wiese into the chute who came in second through fourth, and a sixth place runner.
Wiese possibly ran her best race of her career breaking the tape in a winning time of 18:27.59. She overtook the Sioux Falls Christian runners toward the end of the race and cruised in 12.5 seconds ahead of SFC’s Ellie Maddox, also a junior.

Calla Wiese, in her first state cross country race, took a respectable 26th place in a time of 20:23.16 and was only seven seconds from medaling. The top 25 runners are awarded medals.
Running in her final prep cross country race, senior Hamilton finished with a 42nd place with a time of 21:12. The fourth Flier runner, sophomore Westberry finished 57th with a time of 21:37.77.
The boys brought two runners to the meet, freshman Logan Kontz and Senior Brenton Westberry. The boys placed 43rd and 52nd respectively. In his final race, Westberry turned in a time of 18:42.83 and Kontz had a time of 18:27.98.
Tate Grabow, a junior from Hill City, won the meet in a time of 16;17.50. Sioux Falls Christian won the boys division as well with 33 points. The Fliers were not in contention in the boys’ team race.
We’ll have more on Wiese, who has placed in all five state cross country races she’s been in, including the runner-up spot in the 2020 & 2023, in a future edition of the Moody County Enterprise.