Shawano cross-country teams both qualify for state again

The Shawano Community High School cross-country teams each qualified for state for a second straight year after top-two finishes at the Division 2 Oconto Falls Sectional on Oct. 22 at The Patriot Golf Club in Abrams.

The Shawano girls came in first with a score of 69, while the boys took second with a mark of 89.

Oconto Falls also ran well at the sectional, with Ben Adams earning an individual spot at state after placing sixth in the boys’ race.

The two teams and Adams will compete at the state championships on Oct. 29 at The Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids. The Division 2 girls race is set for 12:40 p.m., with the boys racing at 2:35 p.m.

Shawano

The girls team won the sectional title behind top-10 individual finishes from Bailey Hendricks, Lily Guenther and Grace Chelberg.

Hendricks led the way for the team, placing fourth in 20 minutes, 4.1 seconds. Guenther claimed sixth in 20:19.6, while Chelberg finished eighth in 20:32.4.

Maci Beyer and Adalyn Barkley capped the girls team score by placing 22nd and 29th, respectively.

Beyer completed the course in 21:47.3.

“Me and my team ran so well because of all the support we have from teammates and our parents, and we tried our best to keep all the negativity out of our head,” said Beyer.

Barkley turned in a time of 22:15.4.

“Qualifying to state means a lot for our team. It showed us that all of our hard work put into the season paid off,” said Barkley. “With lots of injuries that occurred in our team during the season, it was difficult for us to see what our full potential was. But having some of those injured runners back up to place, it really pushed the team and got us to where we are currently.”

Beyer and Barkley said the team doesn’t have any specific team goals in mind about where it hopes to place at state, instead hoping to run their best and place as high as they can.

“With all of the hard work we have been putting in, we are using this meet to show everyone what we are capable of doing,” said Barkley.

Anabelle Schroeder and Lauren Harkey will also run for the Hawks at state. Schroeder completed the sectional course in 22:28.3, with Harkey across the finish line in 22:59.1.

Will Chelberg and Ethan Onesti turned in top-five finishes to help the Shawano boys place second and qualify for state.

Chelberg passed several runners in the second half of the race to eventually take second in 16:46.9. Onesti claimed fourth in 17:12.1.

Andon Chelberg was the next Hawk across the finish line, taking 13th in 17:55.3.

“The meet today was pretty stressful,” said Andon Chelberg. “We went in knowing that we were fully capable of another state run and just needed to perform how we have the whole season. I think we were all pretty worried about letting our team down, especially our seniors. Individually, I have no regrets and thought I did everything I could have to help my team advance.

“As a team, I trusted that my teammates would step into the spots we needed them in. I wasn’t let down because after I finished, I noticed my faster teammates, Ethan and Will, had performed excellently. Along with that I saw the rest of my teammates, Connor (Chelberg), Aidan (Preston), Jaymin (Boivin) and Quinn (Olson), give it all they had to catch people in the chute, knowing every spot counted.”

Connor Chelberg was the fourth Hawk runner to finish, placing 31st in 18:46.7.

“Our team ran great,” said Connor Chelberg. “We were all hyping each other up, because we knew we had another shot at state. The team went out there and gave it all they got. Will, Ethan and Andon knew what they had to do and got the job done.

“The seniors performed really well. Aidan Preston, who had been out for most of the season, went out and PR’d (set a personal record) by a minute, which helped us out so much. Jaymin and Quinn had a great race and caught as many guys as they could. For me, I was just trying to go after as many runners. I am super proud of my teammates.”

Preston, a senior, capped the team score by placing 44th in 19:29.6. Boivin, another senior, came in 59th in 20:22.2, while Olson was 73rd in 20:52.5.

After racing at state last year, the boys team now knows what to expect and intends to make some noise at state.

“As a team, we all want to have fun, but now after a year of knowing what state is like, we want to get serious and see what we can do with more competition,” said Andon Chelberg.

Oconto Falls

Adams completed the course in 17:21.5 to finish sixth and punch his ticket to state.

“I was excited about today. I wanted to do well,” said Adams. “I set my mind to run with the front-runners and did my best to keep pace. The competition was strong.”

He qualifies for state a season after his older brother Joe also qualified for state as an individual. It will be Ben’s first state run as a sophomore.

“To qualify means so much to me,” said Adams. “I worked toward this goal all year, and all those miles paid off. Our team this year was special; we pushed each other to be our best.”

As he prepares for state, his main goal is to soak up the experience.

“For next week, my goal is to enjoy every minute,” the sophomore said. “You never know if you will make it again. I will push hard to do my best.”

The Oconto Falls boys placed ninth at the sectional with a score of 186, while the girls came in fourth with a mark of 107.

Griffin Kopke (18:43.2) was the second boys finisher, taking 28th. Evan Yuma (19:08.3) placed 35th for the Panthers.

Brant Laluzerne (20:09.5) took 56th, while Emerson Rice (20:38.5) was 69th to cap the team score. Layton Rickert (21:33.6) and Garrett Ganter (22:52.1) also ran for the Panthers.

Hannah Ludemann (21:01), Brooke Hodkiewicz (21:15.5), Hailey Delzer (21:35.1) and Maddy Przybylski (21:52.4) placed in the top 25 to help the girls team to a strong finish. Ludemann placed 13th, Hodkiewicz 15th, Delzer 21st and Przybylski 24th.

Mackenzie Lotto (22:24.6) placed 34th to cap the team score. Ava Hodkiewicz (22:27.8) and Sydney Bell (22:42.1) also ran for the Panthers.

Full results from the sectional can be found at www.wiaawi.org/Sports/Fall/Boys-Cross-Country/Tournament. More photos from the sectional can be found on the NEW Media Inc. Sports Facebook page at www.facebook.com/NewMediaIncSports.

sports@newmedia-wi.com