By Morgan Rode sports@newmedia-wi.com
Leader photo by Morgan Rode Shawano freshman Grace Beyer, left, and senior Alice Hoffmann near the end of a snow-covered girls race at the Division 2 Freedom Sectional on Saturday.
The end of the cross-country season is often run in less than ideal weather conditions.
Weather was certainly an issue during the Division 2 Freedom Sectional at Irish Waters Golf Club on Saturday, when runners not only had to deal with cold temperatures and high wind gusts but also spurts of sleet and plenty of snow.
Clintonville standout freshman Jesse Wilson did not let the adverse conditions affect him, navigating his way through the wet and slippery course in a time of 16 minutes 51.01 seconds to take first and secure a spot at the state meet next Saturday in Wisconsin Rapids.
“It’s just an amazing feeling, I can’t wait to get there. I’m hoping to do well,” said Wilson just minutes after his state-qualifying run.
“At the start (of the race) it was really slippery and there were a few other stretches that were really windy,” he said of the weather. “When the hail came, it really just knocked the wind right out of you.”
For teams to qualify for state, they needed to place either first or second. For an individual to earn a trip at state, they needed to place among the top-five runners not on one of those two state-qualifying teams.
The WIAA State Meet will be held at Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids next Saturday.
The Shawano girls earned 138 points to place fifth as a team, behind state-qualifiers Freedom (35) and Lakeland Union (46) along with Mosinee (99) and Tomahawk (107).
Freshman Odessa Arce (21:25.55) turned in one of her best finishes of the season, placing 14th as an individual. Lydia Beyer (21:55.03) took 26th while Alice Hoffmann (22:06.53) and Grace Beyer (22:07.63) crossed the finish line in 28th and 29th, respectively.
Dayna Besaw (22:45.04) rounded out the team score while Carrie Young (22:50.44) and Claire Guenther (23:40.95) also represented the Hawks.
The boys team scored 241 points to place 11th at the sectional. Ethan Chelberg (18:01.97) led the way with a 33rd place finish while Demetrius Kaquatosh (18:14.35) placed 37th. Karsten Anderson (18:21.75), Joseph Mente (18:55.81) and Carter Schmidt (19:11.59) capped the team score.
Rory Johnson (19:19) and Elijah Etten (19:48.57) also ran for the Shawano boys.
“Very proud of our team efforts today as I have been throughout the season,” Shawano coach Steve Stomberg said. “Tough group of athletes willing to push to the best of their abilities. Going to miss my senior girls but they are leaving with a good memory of cross country this year. Boys are all coming back next year and are going to be stronger with more competition on the team.”
Aside from Wilson’s first-place finish, the Clintonville boys team placed ninth with 206 points. The Truckers girls team scored 293 points to place 12th.
Austin Tosdale (17:34.91) crossed the finish line in 12th for the boys while Cameron Mauel (18:37.89) came in 53rd. Cody Carrico (19:25.98) and Klay Barkow (19:30.54) rounded out the team score while Brody Prill (19:52.58) and Joseph Klemp (21:56.49) also competed.
Jasmine Wilson (21:33.73) paced the girls team with an 18th-place finish while Kayla Klemp (23:29.69) took 52nd. Allison Smejkal (24:32.25), Katie Lamberies (26:00.2) and Melanie Walotka (28:33.14) capped the team score. Esther Rahlan (28:33.26) was the team’s sixth and final runner.