The Sierra Lutheran High School cross country team competed in the last race of the regular season leading into this week's regional championships at Carlin.
The Falcons put together a third-place finish at Rite of Passage despite battling 30 to 50 mph winds that kicked up plenty of dust clouds.
Dayton won the race with a team score of 51, while Whittell took second.
Falcon senior Taylor Love jumped out to an early lead, which he maintained throughout the race, although Whittell's David King challenged for the lead several times.
Michael Kubel worked his way up through the pack of 60 runners to finish third and Andrew Deterding came in 13th.
Levi Grabow and Ryan Jackson completed the top-five scoring positions for the Falcons while freshman Ben Martin continued to improve.
"The times for this race were a little slow due to the extraordinary high winds, but the team continued to work hard together and we be ready and competitive for regionals next week," coach Dave Marson said.
