Oconto Falls girls 7th, boys 8th at cross-country invitational

Petersons, Kaczmarek lead Gillett teams
By: 
Morgan Rode
Sports Editor

The Oconto Falls High School girls and boys cross-country teams had top-10 finishes at a strong Shawano Invitational on Sept. 11 in Shawano.

The Oconto Falls girls came in seventh with a team score of 198, while the boys were eighth with a mark of 219. Against other Division 2 schools, the girls and boys each took third.

Hannah Ludemann and Brooke Hodkiewicz led the way for the girls team with top-20 finishes. Ludemann was the 17th runner across the finish line, posting a time of 21 minutes, 35.2 seconds. Hodkiewicz placed 20th in 21:51.4.

“When we stick together, work hard and encourage each other, we do really well,” said Ludemann.

“We can improve on trying harder, encouraging each other even more and pushing through the difficulties the course gives us.”

Freshman Hailey Delzer also enjoyed a strong run, taking 36th in 22:38.8. Maddy Przybylski (23:55.1) and Ava Hodkiewicz (24:44) filled out the team score, taking 63rd and 79th, respectively.

“Today’s finish means a lot to all of us, because this just points us to what could possibly happen later in the season and possibly in the following years as a team,” said Brooke Hodkiewicz.

Joe Adams earned the Panthers’ top boys individual finish on the day, coming in 12th in his race with a time of 17:25.3.

Ben Adams was the second Oconto Falls boys runner across the finish line, taking 38th in 18:26.1.

Grant Yuma (19:09.2) placed 55th, while Griffin Knox (19:13.9) was 59th. Brant Laluzerne capped the team score after taking 84th in 19:56.9.

“Today’s invitational went really well for us,” said Joe Adams. “We definitely got a great young group of runners this year. The competition at this meet was a great experience for us. When we are challenged, we grow stronger. That is evident with the times we had today compared to the first meet.”

Gillett

Gillett also had several individual runners with strong runs, leading to a 10th-place finish for the boys team with a score of 237 and a 12th-place finish for the girls team with a mark of 263.

One of just two qualifying Division 3 teams in action, the boys were first and girls second.

Alex Peterson had Gillett’s top individual finish, placing fifth in the boys race with a time of 16:39.6.

“My race and post race were definitely a roller coaster,” said Peterson. “I felt pretty good through the first mile and most of the second mile. But the third mile for me felt slow. I looked at the clock coming into the finish, and I thought it said 17:04, which isn’t a PR (personal record). But turns out, I ran a 16:39! I guess I felt better than I thought. Just like my coach always tells us, trust your training and get the job done. That’s what I felt I did today.”

Evan Peterson wasn’t too far behind Alex, taking 13th in 17:29.7. Conner Hanson was 39th in 18:26.8.

Scott Herroux (20:43.2) and Aydin Franti (21:37.6) capped the team’s top-five runners, finishing 106th and 116th, respectively.

“Team wise, I am very excited of the improvements we have made, including an almost two-minute PR from one of our freshman (Herroux),” said Evan Peterson. “And with all the guys posting season PRs, I know that our team has something special in store for us later down the road — hopefully a state trip to Wisconsin Rapids. And with a new sophomore joining our team (Franti), that just makes our vision even more tangible.

“Overall, I am very proud of our team today for taking first over Bonduel, which was a great test for sectionals, and for our whole season so far.”

Carleigh Kaczmarek led the Gillett girls team, placing 15th with a time of 21:28.5.

Angela Mosconi finished 45th in 22:54.1, while Kasey Hansen was 69th in 24:09.9.

Cheyenne Krueger (24:25.6) and Laney DeBauch (25:00.3) were the team’s fourth and fifth runners to finish, placing 73rd and 85th, respectively.

“Running against such great competition definitely helps us push ourselves to be the best,” said Kaczmarek. “It takes more determination and confidence to run with them, so it’s definitely going to help with tournament time.”

Suring

Suring only had four girls runners take part in the invitational, so no team score was achieved.

Chantelle VanDenElzen was the top finisher, placing 82nd in 24:51.5.

“This race was a great experience for my team as we all improved our times,” said VanDenElzen. “It taught us that teamwork and positivity can help us reach our goals.”

Hailey Thomson wasn’t far behind VanDenElzen, coming in 86th in 25:00.5.

Georgia Gerndt (25:59.3) and Samantha Seibert (28:15.6) were the other two runners, taking 101st and 115th, respectively.

ONLINE

Full results can be found at pttiming.com.