Hi-Line Athlete Profile: Elijah David, HHS Cross Country

Cross country may not be the main sport at Havre High, but for junior Elijah David, it is safe to say that he is very good at it.

David is only in his second year as a Blue Pony harrier, and he has stepped into the role of the team’s No. 1 runner quite nicely. Last year, as a sophomore, David began his cross country career, and he has been climbing the ranks ever since. This season, the boy’s team is in somewhat of a rebuilding mode but David continues to help lead a Pony team that remains competitive week in and week out.

Last weekend, running at the Mountain West in Missoula, David recorded a season best 17:49. And surprisingly enough, that wasn’t the best HHS score as only five seconds separated the top four runners for the Blue Ponies.

But outside of cross country, David has also become a staple for the Hi-Line United soccer team.

Playing since he was in third grade, David has immersed himself in soccer in an attempt to get better each and every year. And with the hopes of playing soccer at the collegiate level, David continues to work nearly year round to fine tune his skills with just two more years of prep soccer ahead of him. David is nearing the beginning of his fourth season with the United and already ahs goals to win his second team title. David won a state soccer title with the United two years ago and helped with a third place finish last year.

But before David can earn anymore soccer titles, he must first get through the rest of the cross country season. And next up for David and the rest of the HHS runners is the annual Havre Invite run on the campus of Montana State University-Northern on Saturday. It's the Blue Ponies' only home meet of the 2013 season.

HHS hosts its annual havre Invite Saturday morning, starting at 10 a.m. at the race course at MSU-Northern. There will be races for junior varsity boys and girls and varsity boys and girls. There will also be middle school races as well. Saturday is Havre's

Here’s five questions with David as he prepares to run the only meet of the season on Havre soil.

HDN: With little depth on the boy’s team this year, how have you guys been able to remain competitive as a team?

David: “We are really competitive with each other and that is what keeps us going. Brandon (Robertson) has really stepped up, and this is just his second year. And Sundance, I beat him all last year, but this year everybody has stepped it up a notch. That is what keeps us going, we are all competing for that top spot.”

HDN: What benefits do both of the Havre teams have running at home this weekend?

David: “I would say we have a really good advantage. Last year I PR’d (Personal Record) hardcore at home, so this year I think we should all be able to get PR’s running at home. The morale goes up so much with all of our fans cheering.”

HDN: Where do you see the boys team finishing in the conference this year?

David: “I don’t really know. But I don’t think we will take it all because we really are in a rebuilding season I think. Lewistown is ok, but I really thing Belgrade might take the conference. Last year we lost some really good runners, so we might finish fourth or fifth. This is an all new team, so it is hard to say, but think we will be even better next year.”

HDN: What is tougher, playing an entire soccer match, or running a personal best cross country race?

David: “That is really hard actually. It really depends where you are, because in Butte, playing a 90-minute soccer game at elevation, that sucks. But I guess soccer is harder because it incorporates sprinting too. But cross country is definitely hard and practice is harder because it just running with no ball. It is kind of a tossup.”

HDN: Having already accomplished a state soccer title, what would it mean to you to earn at least one more state soccer title in your final two seasons?

David: “I would be so happy, and that is what we are aiming for this year. All of our players from last year are coming back and we have a bunch of new kids moving up. I would be really happy, and I really think we have a good chance.”