September 2, 2021 at 10:59 a.m.
Hodag boys clipped by Medford for Mosinee Invite title
Hodag boys clipped by Medford for Mosinee Invite title
Medford edged Rhinelander 47-52 for the team title, but coach M.J. Laggis said he was proud of how Rhinelander has closed the gap with a team that's perennially one of the best in the Great Northern Conference.
"We were really close to Medford," he said. "We talked to Medford's coaches for a while after today. They know how close we are. It's really down to one runner. We've just got to keep getting better."
Rhinelander's girls' squad, which lost No. 2 runner Sophia Miljevich to injury during the race, finished fourth in its division.
Cal Laggis secured his second consecutive fourth-place finish to start the year, covering the five-kilometer course in 17 minutes, 42 seconds. He finished behind GNC rivals Joey Sullivan of Medford, Sam Gremban of Northland Pines and Owen Clark of Lakeland.
"He's 17:42 and he was hot on (Clark's) heels," coach Laggis said. "If Cal had a little more race, I think he would have got him. That's typical Cal this time of year. He'll keep going the right direction, we hope. I'm proud of him. He had a really good effort today."
Rhinelander had two separate packs behind Laggis on the boys' side. Jack DeNamur, Cody Ruetz and Ty Welk all medaled, placing eighth, ninth and 10th on the day. DeNamur led the three at 19:16, followed by Ruetz at 19:26 and Welk at 19:34.
"Really happy that Jack DeNamur had a top 10, Ty Welk had a top 10, Cody Ruetz had a top 10 and Cal. It's awesome having four boys in that top 10. That's a spot we haven't been before," M.J. Laggis said.
Rhinelander had its top four runners across the line before Medford had three runners across, but Medford's depth proved to be the difference. The Raiders got their third, fourth, fifth, and sixth runners to the line before Jaden Beske crossed in 23rd overall for Rhinelander (21:35), which ultimately swung the final score in Medford's favor.
Greyson Gremban (24th, 21:41) and Gavin Denis (26th, 21:48) rounded out the varsity contingent for Rhinelander.
"We've got to find a fifth," Laggis said. "We've got Jaden Beske trying to play football and cross. That's difficult for Jaden, but he's a great kid and we love him and we've got a freshman and a sophomore that are right on the cusp, and we've got to keep developing those two. Greyson Gremban and Gavin Denis are right there. They've got to keep dropping time."
Miljevich was running ninth, just ahead of teammate Leah Jamison, when the field passed by the spectators roughly a mile into the race before heading into the wooded back loop of the Nine Mile course. Laggis said the freshman was still running inside the top 15 when she hurt her ankle and was forced to abandon the race.
"Just an outside roll. She was running and she rolled to the outside," he said. "We carted her off and got it on ice. Hopefully she recovers. Sophie was having a nice run. She was making some good gains from her first race."
Jamison scored her second consecutive top-10 finish for the Hodag girls, placing 10th overall with a time of 22:19. The sophomore has been Rhinelander's top runner in each of the team's first two races.
"Leah Jamison, her offseason work ethic is a direct connection to what she's doing in races right now. I'm really proud of Leah," coach Laggis said.
Senior Emma Germain was second-fastest on the team Tuesday, taking 19th overall (23:45), just six seconds ahead of teammate Juliana Smith in 21st.
"Emma is as much of a leader as you can be," Laggis said. "Her offseason weight routine is fantastic, and her leadership in practice is fantastic. She's the heart and soul of our girls. Juliana has quietly just improved and improved and we're really pumped up where she's at."
Senior Sage Flory came across 26th, followed by Reese Gehrig and Luciana Grage in 28th and 29th. Eva Hetland rounded out the varsity running order for Rhinelander in 37th.
Laggis said he's pleased with what the freshman class - including Miljevich, Gehrig and Grage - have brought to the girls' squad so far.
"I really like their personalities and they want to get better every day," he said. "They talk about how they're going to get better and improve. That's just so fun as a coach to see kids with that attitude."
Medford swept the boys' and girls' competitions at Tuesday's nine-team meet that included every Great Northern Conference school with the exception of Tomahawk. Sullivan (16:19) won the boys' race while Northland Pines' Nora Gremban (18:56) roared to a nearly two-minute victory in the girls' race.
Rhinelander returns to action this coming Tuesday in the Wittenberg-Birnamwood Invitational.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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