Hodag harriers eye bounce back run, state berth at sectionals

The Rhinelander High School boys’ cross country team got knocked down last Saturday when a chance to win the Great Northern Conference title slipped out of its grasp in the final mile. With even higher stakes on the line this afternoon, the Hodags are looking to get right back up.

The Hodags will get set to do battle with rival Lakeland and 13 other teams this afternoon in a WIAA Division 2 cross country sectional in Colby. While Rhinelander did not win the GNC title, like it did in 2021, the Hodags still stand a more than reasonable chance to make it back to state as a team for the first time as a team in three years. At the very least, the Hodags hope to send some individuals to next Saturday’s state meet in Wisconsin Rapids. 

It’s the way that the conference title slipped away that has the Hodags extra motivated going into today’s race. Rhinelander was in position to win until a couple of their runners faded down the stretch. How Saturday’s race went down has only added fuel to the team’s fire, according to senior team captain Greyson Gremban.

“We’re going to have a chip on our shoulder after today,” he said afterward. “There’s going to be a story to be had the next week coming into a taper, going into the final week.”

The top two teams and top five runners not on a qualifying team will advance to next week’s state meet. The River News compiled a mock sectional race, based on season-best times for runners in the field, using running database websites MileSplit.com and Athletic.net. The data shows that it may come down to a battle between Rhinelander and Lakeland for a trip to Wisconsin Rapids.

The mock sectional shows New London as the favorite on the boys’ side, totaling 66 points with four runners among the 13 fastest in the sectional. Rhinelander and Lakeland are separated by a scant two points, 91-93, for the second and final qualifying spot. With the next three teams — Oconto Falls 137, Tomahawk 149 and Menomonie Indian 160 — a good ways back, it stands to reason that three teams are fighting for two qualifying spots going into today’s race. 

To be sure, mock projections don’t take into account weather conditions, course difficulty and current form. Because of that, coach M.J. Laggis said he’s more focused on how his team performs today. 

“Where we have been running with our top five runners, they’ve got to fit in right there,” he said. “To say the least, they’ve got to fit in right there and finish strong. New London’s good, Lakeland’s good. On paper, I guess they would be the favorites, but we have a chance for sure so we’ve got to work hard, get ready and try to upset someone.”

Even if the Hodags fall short as a team, they stand a good chance of sending a runner or two to Wisconsin Rapids. Avrom Barr, a sophomore, has the fourth-fastest time in the sectional with the 16-minute, 37.2-second time he put down at the Hatchet Invite Oct. 12. Gremban is right behind him in fifth with the 16:41.8 mark he set at last week’s conference meet. 

They have been Rhinelander’s top two runners all season and will look to work near the front of the pack in order to accomplish the Hodags’ team goals. 

“Avrom and I have said all year we don’t care who wins between the two of us as long as our points remain low,” Gremban said. “Our goal is to score low for our team and that’s where our heads are at. We’re competing for each other.”

Barr said Gremban has become an older brother of sorts for him during his two seasons as part of the Hodag team, and credits him for the success he’s had this season.

“Greyson, I wouldn’t be where I’m at today without him. This past year, this kid has raised me — my running, my strength, my mentality of getting to where I am now,” he said.

There is even more motivation for Gremban in his last sectional race. He was on the state qualifying team in 2021, only to be the sixth-fastest non-team qualifier each of the last two years. He entered as one of the favorites to qualify last year in Colby, but struggled on race day, finishing 11th and missing state by roughly 28 seconds.

“There’s obviously a personal vendetta,” Gremban said. “The last two years haven’t gone my way. I intend for not only myself, and I’ve told you this before, I want to see as many (Hodag) jerseys in Rapids as humanly possible. I will do my job. I’m confident in my teammates to do our job. We’re going to compete. We’re going to compete at a high level and we’re going to try our best to go to Rapids.”

Much like in 2021, Laggis said he’s banking on the decision to wait until this week to cut back on the team’s miles will be the ticket that lands his squad in Wisconsin Rapids — despite how things played out at conference last Saturday.

“We’re going to stick with our plan,” he said. “We’re going to taper this week, take it to sectionals and hopefully peak at the right time. We’ve got to get a few things to bounce our way, not everything to not go our way. That’s running, that’s life, that’s competition. We just have to rebound, get ready, stay with our plan and try to have a good sectional.”

Gremban said one thing’s for certain. There will be no holding back today.

“As a senior, it’s the last dance here, last opportunity for me to make a mark for something I’m decent at for my community,” he said. “We’re going to give it our best shot.” 

While the Hodag girls likely will not factor into the team portion of today’s race — they’re projected to finish fifth in a 14-team field — the squad does have an outside chance of sending a runner or two to Wisconsin Rapids. 

    Rhinelander’s Brynn Teter competes during the final mile of the Great Northern Conference meet in Eagle River Saturday, Oct. 19. Teter, who finished fifth at conference comes into sectionals with the 13th-fastest time in the field, right behind sophomore teammate Macy Myers. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

Sophomore Macy Myers and senior Brynn Teter come in off career-best races on Saturday as they finished fourth and fifth at the GNC meet. Myers sits 12th in the field following her time of 20:48.8 while Teter is 13th at 20:49.9. With Shawano and Oconto Falls favored to advance on the girls’ side, the projected individual cutline falls to ninth-place Haylee Rusch of Seymour at 20:39.5. 

“We’re going to work our butts off and race as hard as we can and just have a really good last race to our season,” Teter said. 

Regardless of how things shake out, Teter and Myers will be able to hang their hats on the fact that their emergence helped the Hodag girls exceed preseason expectations. Teter, who wasn’t even on last year’s sectional roster after dealing with injury in the final weeks of the season, has consistently been Rhinelander’s top runner this year with times two to three minutes faster than previous seasons on a race-by-race basis.

“It’s been a great season. I never really expected to excel this much this season, but I’m really happy,” she said.

Myers has also turned heads in her first year of competitive running. She’s held strong as the Hodags’ second runner for much of the season before pacing the Rhinelander squad in each of the last two races. 

“This summer I could only run like two miles without stopping,” she said. “This is definitely been an improvement for me. Brynn and (fellow senior) Luna (Grage). They’ve really helped push me and become a better runner.”

The races will take place at Colby High School. The girls’ race will begin at 4:15 p.m., with the boys’ race going off at 5 p.m. and awards to follow at approximately 5:45 p.m. 

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].