Eight Idaho girls ended their historic seasons over the weekend at Nike Cross Nationals (NXN) in Portland.

The Rocky Mountain High School girls team, which placed second at last month's Nike Cross Regionals Northwest (NXR) in Spokane, competed at NXN for a second consecutive season and Boise senior Audrey Orme (third place at NXR) competed in her first NXN. Orme was the top Idaho finisher and the third girl from the Northwest to finish in Saturday's girls race at Glendoveer Golf Course, placing 44th in 18:13.3. Rocky Mountain placed 22nd in Saturday's race at Glendoveer Golf Course with 455 points, led by senior Hallie Heemeyer's 52nd place finish in 18:23.6. Heemeyer was the fifth girl from the Northwest to finish. Rocky Mountain junior Brooke Thompson was 145th in 19:56.9, sophomore Eve Archibald was 148th in 19:58.9, sophomore Carly Hartman was 162nd in 20:13.5, junior Solana Lucas was 174th in 20:35.1 and sophomore Makelle Carlson was 176th in 20:36.6. Sophomore Ginger Gardiner did not finish.

The girls race had 22 teams and 198 finishers while the boys race had 22 teams and 201 finishers. This year was the 20th annual race for NXN, which has taken place every year except 2020 since it began in 2004 as Nike Team Nationals and ultimately becoming NXN in 2008 with the addition of individual qualifiers. A total of 401 runners qualified for this year's meet from nine regions across the country.

The runners had two days to experience Nike's hospitality before race day, having the opportunity to visit the Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton, hear Nike professional runners speak and receive a significant amount of new Nike gear.

Orme, who is Boise's first NXN qualifier since 2018, said she was impressed by the amount of work Nike put in to welcome the runners.

"Nike does an amazing job preparing for the athletes and making sure we have a comfortable time there," Orme said Thursday by phone. "It was awesome to be with the best runners in the nation."

Heemeyer, who was one of four Rocky Mountain runners to compete at a second NXN, said it was great to see her newest teammates who had not previously been to NXN take everything in over the weekend.

"That was so fun and really special," Heemeyer said. "It's funny because it just made me realize, 'Oh, that was me last year.' It was fun to see them experience everything for the first time, the magic of it."

Multiple Nike professional runners were guest speakers during the first two days, including two-time U.S. Olympian Cole Hocker, 2021 U.S. Olympian Karissa Schweizer, four-time Canadian Olympian Mohammed Ahmed, two-time U.S. Olympian Grant Fisher, 2024 U.S. Olympian Conner Mantz and 2020 Mountain View High graduate and 2025 World Athletics Outdoor Championships steeplechase qualifier Lexy Halladay Lowry.

"It was so cool hearing all their interviews and the Q and As," Heemeyer said. "They had really great answers. It was cool to hear their stories about how they got started in high school."

Heemeyer had the chance to speak with Halladay Lowry, who concluded an accomplished collegiate career at BYU earlier this year. Heemeyer will be continuing her career at BYU next fall.

"She's just an amazing person," Heemeyer said. "She's really one of those people that I look up to. It makes me even more excited for my future. It also inspires me because she's worked insanely hard over her running career and she's super dedicated. You can see how she loves the sport."

Orme took a picture with Hocker and had hoped to meet Halladay-Lowry, but the line to do so was really long. She said it was amazing that Halladay Lowry came from a neighboring District 3 high school and is now a pro runner. 

"It's really inspiring to see her go so far with the sport," Orme said.

One of the most anticipated moments of the weekend was when the runners received their uniforms and gear. Rocky Mountain received green jerseys with their NXN team name Meridian across the front in white, green shorts and arm sleeves while Orme and the six other Northwest Regional girls individual qualifiers received white jerseys with green splash designs emblazoned with Northwest across the front and green shorts and arm sleeves. Each NXN runner also had a personalized locker where the Nike gear was stored.

"Me and the other girls from the Northwest, we were really excited for the gear drop," Orme said. "It was a special moment to open the lockers. We were really lucky to be able to take home this much stuff from Nike."

In addition to the customized uniforms, NXN runners received Dragonfly spikes, Vomero running shoes, backpacks, Gatorade protein bars and Gatorade water bottles, a Nike sweatsuit with the NXN logo on the half zip top and socks. Runners were also surprised with free pairs of Nike street shoes waiting for them in their hotel rooms after the race.

Race day itself looked significantly different than previous years. For the first time in recent memory, it did not rain on race day and the sun even came out during the girls race, which took place after the boys race. The course was soggy from rain earlier in the week, but race day conditions were a far cry from last year's downpour and the foot-and- a-half deep puddle during the 2023 race.

"That puddle wasn't even there," Heemeyer said. "They pumped out that puddle like a week before. We got very blessed this year. I think the days leading up to it were really rainy and cold and we were definitely preparing ourselves for really bad race day conditions. The sun came out and it was like a miracle. The course, it was still pretty muddy in spots, but definitely not as bad as mentally I was preparing for."

"The course wasn't actually as bad as I anticipated," Orme added. "There were a couple spots where you had to watch your footing and steer clear of the really muddy spots. I just tried to stay light on my feet and kind of focus on not absorbing the ground with my legs as much and trying to go around it versus going through it in the middle."

Heemeyer improved on both her time and place from last year, when she finished 69th in 18:41.8. She said she and her Rocky Mountain teammates wanted to improve on last year and get off to a good start. Individually, she said she wanted to start the race in the top 20.

"I was able to execute that for half the race," Heemeyer said. "I definitely knew there was gonna be so many more people than I'm used to racing against. I was picturing it like NXR, but on a much larger scale. I definitely had my sights set on maybe a higher place, but I'm just grateful for the opportunity to race these amazing girls." 

Halladay Lowry had encouraged the NXN runners to have a strong start because of how difficult it could be to move up later in the race in muddy conditions. That advice was something Orme took to heart. She added that there was some confusion because some girls heard the whistle for runners to take their marks and they took off before quickly returning to the starting line, but then the starting gun was fired shortly after that. She and several others had thought the race would be re-started.

"My goal originally was to just kind of get out in the beginning of the race at the start and kind of set myself up for good placing," Orme said. "You just have to go really far out along to kind of pass all the packs and it was harder than I anticipated."

Heemeyer and Orme both said they thoroughly enjoyed meeting other runners from around the nation. While Heemeyer did spend ample time with her team, she met several new people including some future BYU teammates.

"That was honestly one of my favorite parts," Heemeyer said. "I think this year as I've gotten to know who more people are and be excited to race a lot of new people, it definitely is fun and, not a weird experience, but kind of an out of body experience of, 'Oh, those are the runners I've heard the names of all season.' They are high school kids, but were all great athletes too."

Orme said she loved getting to know so many athletes who were as passionate about running as her.

"Qualifying as an individual set the stage for me to meet so many people from other regions," Orme said. "I met a lot of girls from the Midwest and Texas. I couldn't tell you all the people I met, but I met a lot. I had a lot of really neat conversations with the other girls on the bus."

Heemeyer's parents, younger brother and one of her older brothers and his fiance all traveled to Portland to watch her, and four of Rocky Mountain's coaches also accompanied the team. Orme's parents and Boise head cross country coach Aaron Olswanger made the trip to watch her. Heemeyer and Orme are both currently taking two week breaks from running before starting winter training. Both expressed excitement for outdoor track, and Orme said she and some of her fellow Boise seniors may compete at the annual Simplot Games in February in Pocatello.

Both girls concluded historic seasons individually as well as for their teams. Heemeyer and Orme became the second and third Idaho girls on record to break 17 minutes, with Heemeyer's personal best 16:29.2 and Orme's personal best 16:49.9 making them the No. 1 and No. 2 fastest all-time girls in Idaho history and school record holders for their respective programs. Heemeyer broke 17 three times and Orme two times this season. Additionally, Rocky Mountain and Boise were both ranked by DyeStat.com in their final national girls team rankings before NXN released Nov. 27, with Rocky Mountain taking the No. 18 spot in the U.S. and Boise the No. 27 spot. Rocky Mountain and Boise finished second and third, respectively, at NXR Northwest on Nov. 15 in Spokane. 

Upon reflecting on their senior seasons and high school cross country careers that officially came to end at NXN, Heemeyer and Orme both spoke about setting big goals and continuing the legacy of teammates who graduated before them. 

Heemeyer has contributed to back-to-back Idaho 6A girls state championships for Rocky Mountain (program firsts) and also became Rocky Mountain's first ever girls individual cross country state champion last month with her course record win at Lewiston Orchards.

"I'm just grateful for every opportunity," Heemeyer said. "I also just feel like from the beginning, we dreamed big as a team. It's felt very special, especially being a senior and this is my last (high school) cross country season. I just wanted to make as big of an impact on these girls as I could. All the girls previously who have been seniors before me who are now in college and moving on with their lives had an impact on me. That inspired me to do the same. I'm grateful we can continue to build that legacy and carry it on."

Orme said she set a goal at the beginning of the season to break 17 minutes. In September at Nike Portland, she ran 17:08 to break 2019 graduate Eve Jensen's school record of 17:15.90, going on to break 17 at last month's state meet (personal best) and at NXR Northwest.

"Five, six months ago if you would've told me I would break 17 twice and place third at NXR to qualify for NXN, that would've been insane," Orme said. "To end up doing it twice (breaking 17) was really amazing for me. It means a lot to me. My biggest takeaway was making goals for myself and believing in myself more than I think is possible. I think back to my freshman and sophomore years and the amazing alumni we've had and how much I look up to them. I'm able to carry on the legacy of all the great alumni we've had. As far as the team, those girls are my best friends. It's like a sisterhood for us. We're all such good friends. I really enjoy coming to practice every day. It's a great environment to work hard and achieve our goals and maintain our strong relationships with each other. Coach Aaron, he's an amazing coach. He's supported me through everything. I wouldn't be nearly as far as I am without him."

"I get to be out here and I get to race," Orme said. "That was one of the biggest switches for me. I locked in on my nutrition and strength training, which will carry over into college."

Herriman (Utah) senior Jackson Spencer sprinted past Southlake Carroll (Tex.) senior Caden Leonard and Flagstaff (Ariz.) junior Yohanes van Meerten to win the NXN boys race in 15:01 and continue his undefeated season. Niwot (Colo.) became the third boys team ever to repeat as NXN team champions, doing so with a NXN record low score of 61 points. 

Ann Arbor Pioneer (Mich.) sophomore Natasza Dudek, younger sister of 2019 Footlocker Nationals girls individual champion Zofia Dudek, took the lead in the final 200 meters to win the NXN girls race in 16:50.1, continuing her undefeated season and leading the top three finishers all under 17 minutes. Wayzata (Minn.) won the NXN girls team title for the first time since 2013 with a score of 142, five points over second-place Niwot (Colo.)