Team Preview: RHS Track & Field

The Rhinelander High School boys’ track team has gone through a bit of a renaissance in coach Aaron Kraemer’s five years at the helm. A perennial back marker for years, the Hodags have won two Great Northern Conference championships, finished second in another and have not finished outside of the top half of the conference since 2018.

While the Hodags girls have had some individual successes, the team results have not quite matched that of their male counterparts. However, with a number of standout athletes returning, a strong incoming freshman class and more depth overall, Kraemer said this may be the year the Hodag girls leap into conference contention.

“I really do think they can do something special and this can be a turnaround year for our girls program,” he said.

The Hodags will begin to figure out what they have on Thursday as they head to Wisconsin Rapids for its first indoor meet of the season. There are four true indoor meets on the schedule, plus the Hodag Hybrid meet April 11, before the team heads outdoors and makes a push toward championship season which begins with the conference meet in Medford May 14. 

Not that the Hodag boys’ squad is short on talent, with five returning all-conference honorees and eight sectional qualifiers, but what the Hodag girls have returning in terms of young talent has Kraemer excited. 

That list is headlined by a pair of sophomores who turned heads last year as freshmen — Aila Bergman and Libbey Buchmann. 

Bergman excelled in the hurdles in the jumps. She broke the school record in the 300-meter hurdles (46.87 seconds) at sectionals while missing out on a state meet appearance by one spot. She was a conference and regional champion in that event as well as the runner-up in the regional in the 100 hurdles. She added a fourth-place finish at conference in the triple jump and was on a 4x400-meter team that won conference, took second at regionals and 13th at sectionals.

    In this May 11, 2023 file photo, Rhinelander’s Libbey Buchmann throws the discus during the Hodag Invitational track and field meet at Mike Webster Stadium. Buchmann, a sophomore, qualified placed sixth in the WIAA Division 2 state meet in the discus last June. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Buchmann, meanwhile, excelled in the throwing events while splitting her time between track and softball. She ended her season with an appearance at the WIAA Division 2 state meet, where she earned a spot on the podium with a sixth-place finish in the discus. 

“Aila and Libbey are special athletes and, for both of them, they are sponges,” Kraemer said. “They learn and grow every single day. You see them get better and better. I’m excited to see how they can push it every further. Libbey going to state last year and podium finishing at state, Aila with multiple records last year and somebody that crushed the GNC and broke out school records. She’s just a phenomenal athlete and a phenomenal kids. Both of them are really exciting to think about.”

The team has notable returning athletes in all categories. Junior Lexi Bishop was the team’s top sprinter last year, taking eighth in the 100 at conference and sixth at regionals. She was also part of a sectional-qualifying 4x100 team that also brings back junior Reese Gehrig, sophomore Millie Gruett and sophomore Violet Biolo. 

Sophomore Eva Heck is back in the jumps after a breakout runner-up finish in the high jump at regionals that earned her a spot at sectionals. Sophomore Mya Swanson, who was fifth in the 100 hurdles at conference, joins Bergman on the hurdle crew. 

Junior Luna Grage is back. She along with Gehrig and Bergman return from last year’s GNC-champion 4x400 squad. Grage was also on an all-conference 4x800 relay team that returns senior Maria Hubler and junior Brynn Teter.

“Those were kids were part of that young group and you add to that some returns and seniors like Kyleah Hartman and other seniors that have a lot of miles and time under their belts that can help the young kids come along,” Kraemer said.

Meanwhile, the Hodag add a number of fast freshmen to the fold. Olivia Ruetz, Macy Myers and Lucy Eddy were among the top five on the team in 40-yard dash trials during the opening week of practice while Shayanne Hueckstaedt and Karly Gillingham were among the five best in flying 10-yard times.

Kraemer hopes that added depth will allow the Hodags to break out of what has been a logjam in the middle of the conference pack.

“I just see this as a year where the girls can really achieve that we haven’t been able to do for a very long time,” he said. “To say we’re going to shock everybody and win the conference, I think that’s a reach, but it’s something that they certainly should push and hope for and build for. They can push Mosinee at the end of the day and a lot of these other top girls programs because they have that young talent to add to the already solid upperclassmen.”

While the Hodag boys graduated some key figures, including pole vaulter Kaleb Winter, sprinter/jumper Daniel Gillingham and mid-distance runner Cody Ruetz, Kraemer said he wants to better utilize some of his returning athletes to help fill those voids.

“We had some kids last year that were maybe under utilized. Maybe they were only in a certain event and could help us in certain ways,” he said. “We have some super talented kids coming back that were on the regional, sectionals and state (teams).”

    In this May 11, 2023 file photo Rhinelander’s Truman Lamers attempts a high jump during the Hodag Invitational track and field meet at Mike Webster Stadium Thursday, May 11. Lamers, a junior, won a regional championship in the high jump last May. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Junior Truman Lamers is among the notable returners for the Hodags. He won the regional title in the high jump last year, while taking third in the GNC. He added a sixth-place finish at regionals in the triple jump. Kraemer said Lamers is someone who he wants to utilize a bit differently during the regular season to help prepare him for postseason competition.

“He had a six-foot high jump and a 40-foot triple jump. We’re trying to push into that 6-2 range and a 42 in the triple to compete (to make it to state),” Kraemer said. “For him, I want him to sprint a little bit more so that he can get his power down, work down the track and be really successful in his jumps.”

Senior Payton Campbell leads the Hodags in the sprints after making the finals and placing eighth in the 100 at last year’s conference meet. He was also part of a third-place finish in the 4x100 at conference last year. All the members of that squad are back including senior Mason Baker and sophomores Ben Olson and Sam Zwaard. Campbell, sophomore Connor Dumpprope and sophomore Jackson Fuss made up three-fourths of the 4x400 team that finished third at conference last year and qualified for sectionals with a fourth-pace finish at regionals.

Campbell paced the Hodag boys in early season testing with best time of 4.51 in the 40-yard dash. Fuss, Zwaard, Dumpprope, Olson and Baker all went sub-5 seconds in the 400. Campbell, sophomore Myles Eagleson, Fuss, sophomore Cyrus Leisure and Olson had the team’s top five fly 10 times.

“We have a host of young sprinting talent. The sprints look strong for the boys’ side,” Kraemer said.

Juniors Greyson Gremban and Bo Stott are back after qualifying for sectionals in individual events last year. Gremban was the regional runner-up in the 3,200 meters and placed eighth at sectionals. Stott finished fourth at regionals in the shot put to advance in that event. 

“Bo Stott’s working off of an injury and someone I’m excited about regardless and Sam Balge too, a little bit of senior leadership and can bang some discs out there,” Kraemer noted. “On the distance side, it’s a young crew, but it’s highlighted by Greyson Gremban. Greyson, he’s got some type of mentality to him and it’s been ingrained in his DNA since he’s been very young. He’s an absolute warrior and competitor.”

Rhinelander also returns senior Abe Barlog, who was third in the GNC in the 110 hurdles last year while junior Dresden Klaver finished fourth in the 110 hurdles and fifth in the 300 hurdles.

The Hodags fell to fourth on the boys’ side in the GNC last year after three straight top two finishes in the conference. Kraemer said last year’s champion, Lakeland, figures to be strong again with a number of key pieces returning. 

“If we’re going to make a run in the conference, we’re going to have to take points and push points form those guys so we can compete,” he said.

The Hodags will begin the outdoor portion of their schedule in Kaukauna April 26 and will host their home invite May 9. Rhinelander remains in Division 2 this year and will be part of the Rice Lake regional May 20. Sectionals will take place in Colby May 23 with the state meet set for May 31 and June 1 in La Crosse.

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].

TEAM SCHEDULE

Date    Event    Time

3/14    Wisconsin Rapids Indoor    5 p.m.

3/19    Ashland Indoor    4 p.m.

3/26    Merrill Indoor (Boys)    4:15 p.m.

3/28    Merrill Indoor (Girls)    4:15 p.m.

4/4    GNC Indoor at Pines    4:30 p.m.

4/11    HODAG HYBRID MEET    4:15 p.m.

4/26    Kaukauna Invite    4 p.m.

4/30    Lakeland Invite    4 p.m.

5/3    Otto Bacher Invitational at Merrill    5 p.m.

5/9    HODAG INVITE    4 p.m.

5/14    Great Northern Conference Meet at Medford*    4 p.m.

5/16    Antigo Invite    4 p.m.

5/20    WIAA Division 2 Regionals at Rice Lake    4 p.m.

5/23    WIAA Division 2 Sectionals at Colby    TBD

* Conference Meet | HOME MEETS IN CAPS