April 5, 2021 at 8:59 a.m.
RHS track looking to make up for lost time
RHS track looking to make up for lost time
A program that occasionally had talented individuals, but rarely strong team results, had loads of momentum following a 2019 season that saw the boys' track squad win its first conference championship since 1967. What's more, the team had a pair of podium finishes at the WIAA state track meet and a load of seniors eager to carry the torch forward in 2020.
Of course, those seniors never had that chance and have now graduated, leaving a relatively young and unproven group that's hungry for the 2021 campaign, which will officially begin later this month.
"I think we lost a little momentum after two seasons ago, having a conference championship and the seniors coming back not getting an opportunity. I'm always going to be sad to not be able to see those guys compete," Hodag track coach Aaron Kraemer said.
That being said, there is plenty of energy around the squad, which conducted the first 10 of its 15 contact days in March prior to spring break. Even though the contact days are voluntary, Kraemer estimated that roughly 80 to 90% of his squad was in attendance.
"I'm really excited about who's here," he said. "I think we have a really strong boys' team coming back with a lot of the guys from the football and soccer squads from the fall, and basketball, hockey, wrestling in the winter -even some swim guys I'm excited to work with this year that are new to the program.
"The energy for a track practice the last couple of weeks has been amazing. The kids come in, they're excited about being here and they do their best every single day. That's all we can ask for."
Both the boys' and girls' squads have one returning state qualifier from two years ago.
On the boys' side, junior Caleb Olcikas figures to be the team's top sprinter. He was part of the school's record-breaking 4x200-meter relay team that placed sixth in the Division 2 state meet in 2019. He was also on the conference-championship winning 4x100 and 4x200 relays that year, as well as seventh, individually, at conference in the 200-meter dash.
Another junior, Cole Worrall, will likely be a threat in the hurdle events after taking second in the conference in the 110 highs and third in the 300 intermediates two years ago.
Olcikas and Worrall were also the two fastest on the team in baseline 40-yard dash testing at the start of the contact period - with Olcikas' three-run average clocking in at 4.52 seconds, and Worrall's at 4.68.
"Caleb Olcikas and Cole Worrall are the guys you're going to look at with really unbelievable speed - Cole running the hurdles and Caleb running sprints," Kraemer said.
On the girls' side, senior Rebecca Lawrence is back after a wild run to a runner-up finish at state in the high jump two years ago. She earned an extra qualifier bid to state after placing fifth in sectionals and made the most of the opportunity, jumping 5-2 to end up in a two-person jump off for the state title. She has since become only the fourth 1,000-point scorer in RHS girls' basketball history.
"Obviously Rebecca coming back, I'm really excited about being able to coach her again," Kraemer said. "After the season she had in basketball, she's just an unbelievable competitor. To be around her is really nice, again."
Like the boys, the Hodag girls will feature a pair of speedy juniors in Megan Brown and Sage Flory. Both were part of the team's 4x100 meter relay team that qualified for sectionals two years ago, while Flory also advanced to the second leg of the WIAA tournament series following a fourth-place finish in the 200 at regionals.
Flory and Brown were the fastest in baseline 40 testing at 5.41 and 5.43 seconds, respectively. Lawrence was third at 5.51.
"I think that the sprint training that we've been doing has changed their mindsets about track," Kraemer said. "They're excited. They're fresh. So you're seeing some really good numbers right now. It's just continuing to strive to get better."
But it's not just about metrics. The team needs a whole new group of leaders considering that this year's seniors were sophomores two years ago. The squad got in only a week's worth of practices last year before the pandemic canceled the spring sports season in Wisconsin.
"I look at Daniel Goldsworthy and Ali DeNamur as two unbelievably gifted team people. They care about everybody on the team, want to have a great experience and they're very good leaders," Kraemer said. "I look to them to step up after a year where there was a void in leadership, because there's no track team."
With the unusually mild March, some of the team's contact activities moved outside. If not outdoors, you'll likely find the team either in the weight room or in their new digs inside the Hodag Dome. The 128,000-square-foot facility has a five-lane running track as well as dedicated pits for pole vault and long and triple jump. Though the team has not needed the dome that much so far, thanks to the mild weather, Kraemer knows what sort of an ace-in-the-hole it is.
"You look at the presence this dome has created, the hype this dome has created in the past couple of months since it's been up, and the amount of revenue it's brought, we're the luckiest town and I'm the luckiest track coach in the state, for sure," he said. "I look at this way, to have a place to long jump and pole vault, where we had none, is unbelievable. Even though we still have that outside facility, that indoor facility gives us a place where it's completely climate controlled, no wind. We can really focus on the fundamentals without being hampered by anything else and it's always there for us."
Official practice for the 2021 track season begins April 19, with the first meet set for April 27 at Ashland. As of now, that's the only scheduled indoor meet for the Hodags this season.
Kraemer said the additional contact time leading up to the team's first competition has been a blessing.
"We have four weeks to train before we even have to go to a meet," he said. "We look at it as a blessing to be able to do that for three weeks and be just a little more prepared, especially after a year off."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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