October 19, 2022 at 10:51 a.m.
Hodag harriers seek to go out on high note at sectionals
Hodag harriers seek to go out on high note at sectionals
The chances of repeating last year's feat of sending its boys' squad to the WIAA state meet are slim, but the Hodags still have plenty of individual goals entering the 15-team Division 2 event - including hopes of getting a runner or two to state.
"There's potential there for sure, so we'll be thinking about that all week as we go through, starting our taper week, getting ready for that big race," assistant coach Melissa Krueger said following last Saturday's Great Northern Conference meet in Medford.
Rhinelander was projected to finish third in the boys' race last year, but jumped one position past Freedom to earn the second and final team qualifying spot. This year, the Hodags are predicted to finish eighth, according to season-best times for each team in the field compiled by MileSplit. Though only 51 points separate Rhinelander from projected sectional runner-up Seymour, Rhinelander would need to leapfrog a number of teams - including GNC champion Lakeland - to advance.
"There's no point in comparing to last year, that's not it, but we just want to see our boys take another step," head coach M.J. Laggis said. "I think, what would really be good for us is how can we be from one of those qualifying teams, how tight can we make it? Then that really gives you a goal for the offseason."
That means, at least for Rhinelander's top runners, the goal will be trying to earn an individual qualifying spot as one of the top five finishers not already on a qualifying team. According to the MileSplit projections, senior Cody Ruetz sits seventh overall with a season-best time of 17 minutes, 15.0 seconds. With two runners from projected sectional champion Shawano in the top seven, that puts Ruetz right on the state qualifying bubble.
Sophomore Greyson Gremban is not far behind, seeded 15th overall with a season-best time of 17:44.8.
Having either Lakeland (projected fourth) or Freedom (projected third) sneak past Seymour for the runner-up spot would provide some more breathing room in the individual race. Lakeland's Owen Clark is projected as the top seed in the sectional while Freedom's Willow Mauel comes in with the sixth-fastest time in the field. Seymour's top runner is Reid Clement, seeded 12th.
Last year, Peshtigo's Andrew Nelson was the last runner to qualify individually out of the sectional, turning in a time of 17:22.6. Gremban finished 17th at sectionals last year (18:06.5) while Ruetz came home 20th (18:14.3).
"Can we get Cody through? Can we get Greyson through? I think they're both kind of on the line to have a really good chance," Laggis said.
The Hodag girls enter as even bigger long shots than the boys, projected to finish ninth, well behind sectional favorites Freedom and Shawano. Individually, Leah Jamison is seeded 30th at 21:28.9 and would likely need to drop a minute or more to be in the running for an individual state berth. Last year Sydney Lund of Peshtigo was the last runner to qualify out of the sectional at a 20:44.1, but Fox Valley Lutheran freshman Rowen Volhard is projected in the final qualifying spot this year with a season-best time of 20:15.4.
Juliana Smith, the lone senior on the girls' squad, is seeded 37th while sophomore Sophie Miljevich is seeded 43rd. Miljevich was Rhinelander's top performer at sectionals last year on the girls' side (28th, 21:57.3). Smith was not on last year's sectional team and Jamison missed last year's sectional meet due to injury.
"The girls' side will be a little more difficult but, again, we want to see improvement on the girls' side and prepare for next year because a lot of those kids are coming back," Laggis said.
Unlike last Saturday's GNC meet, weather is not expected to be a factor at sectionals, with sunny skies and a race-time temperature in the 50s. The girls' race will start at 11 a.m. with the boys' race to follow at noon.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
WEATHER SPONSORED BY
E-Editions
Latest News
E-Editions
Events
August
To Submit an Event Sign in first
Today's Events
No calendar events have been scheduled for today.
Comments:
You must login to comment.