November 21, 2014 at 3:23 p.m.
Team review: RHS Cross Country
Hodag harriers enjoyed youth movement in 2014
Team review: RHS Cross Country
Head coach M.J. Laggis, in his second year at the helm, expected plenty of parity in the lineup. In 2013 he had been surprised by the amount of shuffling between the JV and varsity programs, but in his second year, he was prepared for it.
One thing he couldn't prepare for was just how good the underclassmen would prove to be. Laggis said that was a highlight all season long.
"The strength of this group lies in the fact that we are young and will return some strong runners," he said. "Marcus Johnson, Kade Kennedy, Robert Ritchie, Brad Quade, Andy Padgett and Kurt Zuiker are the top returning boys and we'll look to build on them. It's the same with the girls. Alayna Franson, Gracie Quinn, Hallie Wright, Carmen Incha, Hartman and Haley Klaver will be back."
Franson, a freshman, quickly stole the show, firmly establishing herself as the group's top runner. Over the course of the year, she continued to improve and eventually finished seventh at the WIAA Division 1 sectional meet, earning an at-large berth in the state meet.
Laggis said it was clearly the season's high point.
"The highlight, by far, was Alayna going to state," Laggis said. "It was a great race for her as a freshman and just a great experience overall."
Franson ran an even stronger race at the state meet and checked off both goals she carried into the weekend. She improved her time and a 49th-place finish broke her into the top-50. Franson finished the 5K course in 19 minutes, 39.67 seconds.
It was the culmination of a lot of hard work for Franson and the rest of the Hodag cross country squad. Months before though, when the team met for their first practice, the times were much slower and Laggis had a plan to tweak his team's training approach in an attempt to better ensure his runners were peaking at the right time. He wanted the fastest times to come at the end of the year at the Great Northern Conference meet and at sectionals.
The season opener presented an early test for the Hodag harriers, and right away, the freshmen stood out. The year's first race took place at Minocqua Winter Park, a hilly, challenging course that left many of the runners exhausted by the end.
Franson finished second overall in the race with a time of 23:43.6, a performance that immediately caught Laggis' eye.
Isaac Wendt, Kade Kennedy and Tyler Kolasa led the way on the boys' side, but freshman Brad Quade ran well, finishing in 22nd place.
The girls' side finished in third place out of five teams in the opener and the boys ended in fourth place out of seven teams.
It was a sign of things to come for the young Hodag squad. Over the races to come, Rhinelander consistently finished near the middle of the pack, but the times kep improving.
In late September, the Hodags traveled to Wausau to participate in the annual Bill Smiley Invitational. It was the largest field they would see all year and Rhinelander placed near the bottom on both the boys' and the girls' sides. The course at Tribute Golf Course was another hilly affair though, good preparation for their return to Minocqua Winter Park later in the year.
Next, Franson finished first at the Three Lakes Invite, a feather in the team's collective cap, despite losing on the boys' side for the first time in eight tries.
When the team returned to Minocqua Winter Park for the GNC meet, Laggis expected some noted improvement, but the margin by which his team dropped time was stunning even to him.
Franson, firmly established as the team's top runner, dropped three minutes from her original race on the course and finished second overall, earning a spot on the all-conference first team.
Franson's friends followed suit. Quinn shaved 6:11 her time and, in finishing 15th, barely missed all-conference recognition. Incha finished in 18th place, dropping close to 5 1/2 minutes from her original time. Wright dropped more than four minutes, finishing 25th. Hartman and Eggers finished in 27th and 36th places respectively.
On the boys side, Robert Ritchie was tops for the Hodags. He dropped more than four minutes off his time from the first race. Ritchie finished with a time of 19:24, good enough for 18th place. Kolasa finished in 24th, Kennedy in 27th, Quade in 31st, Johnson in 32nd, Wendt in 39th. Padgett finished in 21:48.
The youth movement continued. The top five finishers consisted of three sophomores and two freshmen. Laggis said it's a step in the right direction for the young team.
"We had a lot of kids drop a lot of time over the course of the season," he said. "The numbers clearly showed it as the times steadily went down. For next season, we are really looking to build a running culture."
Franson's performance at the sectional meet earned her a trip to state, but the rest of the Hodags also ran strong.
Hartman was the next finisher for Rhinelander's girls' team, finishing in 59th place. Incha was 60th, Quinn was 62nd, Wright was 66th, Paddock was 69th and Klaver finished 74th.
On the boys side, Kolasa finished a team best 54th. Ritchie was next, and Wendt and Johnson were close behind.
It was a positive season overall for the cross country team. Franson set the tone with her trip to state and with so many runners returning, expectations will be sky high when the group's 2015 campaign draws near. Laggis said the season's end doesn't mean training has to stop though.
"We want kids to enjoy the friendships and the fun experiences of the season, and at the same time we want to build more speed and overall running ability in our kids for next year," he said. "This comes from being on a running program in the offseason, cross training, and being a multi-sport athlete. I love to see kids play multiple sports, because in the end it makes them much stronger athletes all the way around."
Andy Hildebrand may be reached at [email protected].
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