By Morgan Rode sports@newmedia-wi.com
Leader Photo by Morgan Rode Bonduel’s Kara Troxel, center, tries to keep pace with Dodgeland’s Meygan Benzing, left, and Boscobel’s Abri Brown during Saturday’s Division 3 girls race.
Reaching the podium at the WIAA State Cross-Country Championships is a goal all state-bound runners set out to achieve. Only ten runners — per division — earn the honor every fall.
Over her first two years of high school competition, Bonduel’s Kara Troxel has already accomplished the feat twice. Troxel placed ninth in the Division 3 girls race at the state meet at Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids on Saturday, finishing the course in 19 minutes, 28.8 seconds.
“I feel pretty proud of myself,” Troxel said a few minutes after crossing the finish line. “Last year I got beat up the last hill by two girls — I could have had third last year. So I wanted to be sure that I secured my spot (on the podium) and let no one pass me. I did that and also passed a girl at the end.”
Her time was over 10 seconds better than last year when she took fifth at state as a freshman, but Saturday’s field featured a strong lead pack of runners that made things challenging.
The top-12 runners all posted times under 19:40. A total of 15 finished under 20 minutes, as opposed to just 10 last year.
“In the beginning, you got to start out fast,” Troxel said. ” The top 15 grouped together right away and I had to keep counting in my head if I was in the top 10. At one point I was about fifth and then dropped back to 11th, so I knew I had to kick it in to get a podium finish.”
Troxel’s finish gave earned the girls team four points. The Bears finished with 251 points and took 11th.
Madison Kurey (21:46.8) placed 80th while Jessica Ewing (22:11.5) took 93rd. Breanna Schnell (22:47.6) and Erin Timler (22:48.3) both finished in under 23 minutes while Katlin Thompson (24:59.4) and Kim Smith (25:27.1) rounded out the team.
The Bonduel boys totaled 300 points in the Division 3 boys race, taking 13th as a team.
Jared Wondra led the way with a time of 17:51.7 and 58th place finish.
“I was hoping to PR (personal record) but I missed out on that, but I’m still happy with my race because we made it here and I finished the race so I can say I finished my career at state,” Wondra said.
Carter Kurey (17:56.7) and Colin Ewing (18:29.9) also posted solid times for the boys.
“I just wanted to have fun in my last race with my team and try and run a good race,” Ewing said. “The atmosphere was the same as last year, all the sides (of the course) are packed and there’s non-stop cheering. It was awesome.”
“I ran a PR, so that was good, but I didn’t really like it because I got a sideache during the race,” Kurey said. “I really like this course — it’s hard but there’s so much adrenaline that you always end up doing good.”
Jack Johnson (19:15) and William Beaumier (19:57.3) filled out the team score while Colen Klosterman (20:43.7) and Alex Jasch (20:57.7) capped the seven-runner team and an overall fun day of running for the Bears.
“Both teams did very well,” Bonduel coach Diane Schnell said. “I’m very happy with this group of kids for coming down here and competing against some of the best.”
“The atmosphere is very electric and it’s wonderful to see a bunch of parents, friends, students, classmates, other coaches, past coaches, athletic directors — it’s fantastic to see them here supporting our sport. And it’s an honor being down here, of course.”
Clintonville freshman Jesse Wilson got his first taste of state in the Division 2 boys race, placing 121st after earning a time of 18:18.3.
“There were a lot more runners than I thought there would be in the front and it was a lot faster pace than normal,” he said.
While the finish wasn’t where Wilson was hoping it would be, he still enjoyed the atmosphere the meet brought.
With three years of high school remaining, Wilson plans on putting in the extra work to achieve higher finishes and lower times in the coming years.
“Just got to keep training, almost every week, and really focus on speed and then maintaining the miles I do,” Wilson said.
WIAA State Cross-Country Championships
Girls team championships: Division 1 - Muskego 48; Division 2 - Medford 106; Division 3 - Lancaster 74.
Boys team championships: Division 1 - Neenah 122; Division 2 - Valders 98; Division 3 - Aquinas 90.
Individual girls championships: Division 1 - Genevieve Nashold, Madison West, 18:10; Division 2 - Leah Kralovetz, Denmark, 17:46.7; Division 3 - Marissa Ellenbecker, Edgar, 19:06.4.
Individual boys championships: Division 1 - Drew Bosley, Homestead, 15:20.1; Division 2 - Henry Chapman, East Troy, 15:59.3; Division 3 - David Vannucchi, Luther, 15:43.9.