September 17, 2018 at 12:50 p.m.
Hodag cross country battles the heat at Smiley
Hodag cross country battles the heat at Smiley
Mother Nature played a role in one of the warmer Smileys in recent memory. The race-time temperature soared near 80 degrees as the Hodags placed last in both the boys' and girls' Division 1 small races.
"That's the hottest Smiley we've been to," Rhinelander coach M.J. Laggis said. "We've had other years where it's been muggy and warm, that's one thing. But that was just blazing, full sun the whole time. I thought our kids battled through the heat pretty good. It was the same for everyone, but it definitely took a toll on kids in that third mile of the race."
The Hodag runner least affected by the conditions was senior Bridger Flory, who turned in a 14th-place finish in the D1 Small race. He covered the 5-kilometer trail around Tribute Golf Course in 17 minutes, 54.91 seconds - an impressive time considering the heat and the hilly terrain.
"We thought Bridger looked strong and smooth," Laggis said. "When I saw him approaching the two-mile mark, his face was relaxed. He was fully engaged with his arms. He was on his toes just flying. He looked really good."
Jacob Weddle (55th, 19:40.85) was second-fastest for Rhinelander, followed by Jaden Beske (70th, 20:22.92), JC Adams (82nd, 21:59.35), Jack DeNamur (83rd, 22:04.37), Tristan Fuss (84th, 22:09.36) and Daniel Goldsworthy (86th, 22:34.39).
"Another boy who looked about as smooth as he could be today was Jaden Beske," Laggis noted. "He just got stronger as a race went. He's a (dual-sport athlete), a football/cross country guy, and he works really hard in both. I also thought Jacob Weddle hung in there. He didn't have his best race but he hung in there and was our No. 2 guy. Then we had JC and DeNamur right beneath them."
Sophomore Abbie Henrichs once again led a young Hodag girls' squad, placing 48th, with a time of 23:41.19. Sophomore Ali DeNamur (55th, 24:16.11) and freshman Audrey Schiek (59th, 24:35.15) also cracked the top 60 for the Hodags.
"We though Abbie Henrichs was really, really good," Laggis said. "Ali DeNamur was fighting a hip issue and still was our No. 2. She didn't relent. She stayed right with it the whole time. Two girls who are really up-and-comers - Audrey Schiek who was our No. 3 and Megan Brown who was our No. 5 - were really strong today."
Brown was sandwiched between two other Hodag freshmen - Sage Flory and Emma Germain - in a pack that crossed in 65th, 66th and 67th. Senior Claire Bowman was 73rd and junior Jenna Younker rounded out the Rhinelander contingent in 75th.
Rhinelander finished last overall in the Division 1 race, which was split into large and small categories, based on enrollment. The Hodags were 10th of 10 in the D1 Small girls' race and 12th of 12 in the D1 Small boys' race. The divisional placements at Smiley do not necessarily correlate to divisional placements for the WIAA tournament series. Teams like Rhinelander and Lakeland, which ran D1 Small on Saturday, are in Division 2 for sectional and state competition.
"It was a really athletic field today and some high-level competition," Laggis said. "I always feel, when you're driving back from Smiley, you realize there's a lot (of talent) out there."
Lakeland won the D1 Small girls' race with runners Ashley Peterson and Aubrey Anderson finishing 1-2 overall. Medford won the D2 girls' race and placed fourth in the D2 boys' race. All seven Great Northern Conference schools were in attendance on Saturday, racing in either D1 Small or D2.
Laggis said the preseason conference favorites are proving themselves early in the season. The goal for Rhinelander is to try to bridge the gap between now and when the Hodags host the GNC meet in mid-October.
"I feel good about our progress. We have a great group of kids and we have to keep getting better," Laggis said.
Rhinelander returns to action Thursday in the Three Lakes Invite held at Lions Park in Sugar Camp.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.