Rocky Signs Two More
3/18/10

Two more Montana natives have signed letter of intents to join the Rocky Mountain College’s Cross Country and Distance Track program for next year.

Megan Beam, who graduates from Billings West High this year, has signed a national letter of intent to compete at Rocky Mountain College, announced Head Coach Alan King. “I’m very excited to have Megan join the team, she has had a very successful high school career,” stated King. “She is very passionate about the sport and is one of those athletes who is always trying to improve. I can see her improving each and every year and should be able to compete competitively at the college level and make an immediate impact on the team.”

Beam’s cross country personal best is 18:52, set this past cross country season. She also boasts a PR of 2:31for the 800m, 5:28 for the mile, and 11:47 for the 2-mile, all set her Junior year. Megan is also a tree-time state qualifier in cross country. As a Sophomore, she placed 23rd, in her Junior season she placed 20th, and in her senior year earned All-State honors with a 15th place with a finish in a time of 19:14.

Once hearing Megan’s decision, Coach Lauren Wright said, "Rocky Mountain College is a great fit for Megan. She definitely has the talent and the dedication to compete at the next level. Rocky will give her a variety of opportunities in both cross country and track to run against some very competitive athletes, and in the end, make her a better runner. I am excited for Alan to work with her and am very excited to see how much she will continue to improve in her running career. I think she will be a great asset to the Rocky team."

Megan is the daughter of Eric and Greta Beam. She also brings strong academic credentials to the team with a 3.7 GPA. Megan plans of majoring in Biology following the pre-veterinarian track.

Also joining the team next year will be Kati Hengle from Belgrade.

In her Junior season Kati finished 29th at the Class A state cross country meet with a time of 20:47, but got injured before track. She also had to sit out her senior year of cross country. Now healthy again, she is looking forward to senior year of track. “It has been a tough year for Kati, but she has continued to persevere through the hard times,” said Coach King. “This shows me that he is a very determined athlete, which is one of the characteristics I look for in athletes. It will be fun seeing her compete again this spring.”

Kati is the daughter of Ken and Becki Hengle and plans on majoring in Art and currently has a GPA of 3.25.