Bergman scores podium finish at state

LA CROSSE — In her second attempt at the WIAA state meet, Rhinelander junior Aila Bergman was finally able to show to the state that she’s one of the top hurdlers in Division 2.

    Rhinelander’s Aila Bergman stands on the podium after finishing fourth in the Division 2 girls’ 300-meter hurdles during the WIAA state track meet in La Crosse Saturday, June 7. (Brett LaBore/Lakeland Times)
  

Bergman finished on the podium Saturday, placing fourth in the girls’ 300-meter hurdles in the WIAA state track meet at UW-La Crosse. That was the top moment for the Hodag track team at state and continued a string of recent success for the RHS girls in La Crosse. It marked the third consecutive year that the Hodags have had a podium finisher.

“It feels really relieving, honestly,” Bergman told the River News afterward. “I mean, I haven’t been able to PR and get the time that I really wanted. Just being able to be up there on the podium and PR with all those girls is really fun and exciting.”

Bergman’s performance was a positive capper to an otherwise hit-or-miss weekend for the Hodags in La Crosse. Macy Myers was the only other Hodag to score points, taking eighth in the girls’ pole vault. None of Rhinelander’s three relay entries advanced to Saturday’s finals and senior Truman Lamers bowed out in high jump after failing to clear the opening height. 

“You know, getting together with all the coaches, that’s what we said, ‘Boy, that’s how we wanted to end it,’” Hodag girls’ track coach Andy Wyss said of Bergman’s podium finish. “That was a good way to end the meet for us.”

Bergman made her first state podium — she was 16th in the 100 hurdles at state last year — in school-record fashion. She posted a time of 44.79 seconds in the 300 hurdle finals. That was 0.38 seconds faster than her state-qualifying performance eight days prior at the Durand sectional.

That race ended up being a five-way battle for second as Osceola junior Elletta Uddin smashed her own state record in the event, winning with a time of 42.56. Hayward’s Brianna Hexum claimed the runner-up spot (44.47), followed by Berlin freshman Selci Sirrell (44.68), Bergman, Freedom’s Lydia Merrick (44.82) and Columbus’s Payton Dornaus (44.83).

“Through the race, before each hurdle, I was really just thinking, ‘Am I going to make it? Am I going to get my steps right? Is everything going to be good?,’” Bergman said. “And then each hurdle, I did that and my steps never messed up. I was really like grateful for that. Mentally, before the race, I was really ready and focused and it really helped a lot.”

“That was a phenomenal race start to finish,” Wyss added. “She really got out hard. Hit those first hurdles well. I had a really good feeling, especially coming down that back straight, that we were going to end up with a pretty good result.”

Bergman had to wait out a few anxious moments on Friday to see if she would be in the fast 10 who made Saturday’s finals. She finished fourth in her preliminary heat (45.79) and got in when only five runners bettered that time in the second and final heat.

“Just with the way I was feeling, I was like a little scared for what was going to happen if I was going to make it to finals, which I did,” she said. “And I’m really grateful because I got to PR and be a fourth-place medalist.”

    Rhinelander’s Macy Meyers clears 10 feet in the Division 2 girls’ pole vault during the WIAA state track meet in La Crosse Friday, June 6. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

Though she didn’t join Bergman on the medal stand, Myers had a solid performance in the pole vault. Ultimately, she would have needed to break her own school record to have had a chance at making the top six. Myers bowed out with the bar at 11 feet, 6 inches — three inches higher than her school record set at last month’s Great Northern Conference meet — to take eighth in the event. After clearing the opening height of 9-6, and then 10-0, without a miss, it took Myers two attempts to make 10-6 and all three chances at 11-0.

“My goal is to make 11 (feet) at least, so I’m really happy about that,” she said. “I was kind of disappointed because I didn’t make 11-6, but they went up by six inches every time, so I mean, I did my best. I think that it would have been really fun to get 11-6, but I’m really glad that I’m able to get eighth and get points.”

Myers barely grazed the bar going over on her second attempt at 11-6 as she battled a strong Division 2 field. Six vaulters cleared 11-6 and Amery’s Kelly Fern won the event with a vault of 12-6.

“It was a very difficult field this year,” Wyss said. “You know, the fact that 11 feet took eighth place is that’s impressive. I think the event’s only going to get tougher, so I’m glad she’s got a couple more years to work on it.”

    Rhinelander’s Lucy Eddy takes the baton, cheered on by teammate Lexi Bishop during the preliminaries of the Division 2 girls’ 4x200-meter relay at the WIAA state track meet in La Crosse Friday, June 6. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

Rhinelander was unable to match its performances in its three relays, which all came away with 15th-place finishes. 

The squad of Lexi Bishop, Lucy Eddy, Myers and Violet Biolo added time in the 4x200, going 1:47.70. That was about 1 1/2 seconds slower the team’s qualifying time from sectionals. The squad of Shyanne Hueckstaedt, Biolo, Ellie Cummings and Bishop went 51.67 in the 4x100, adding over a second from sectionals. Rhinelander added more four seconds in the 4x400 with the squad of Bergman, Biolo, Eddy and Myers (4:07.71).

Wyss said a number of things contributed to the time additions. For example a slow exchange in the 4x100 set the Hodags back early in the race. Overall, Wyss chalked up the results to first-time jitters for a number of runners. 

    Rhinelander’s Violet Biolo hands the baton to teammate Ellie Cummings during the preliminaries of the Division 2 girls’ 4x100-meter relay at the WIAA state track meet in La Crosse Friday, June 6. (Brett LaBore/Lakeland Times)
  

“We need to be more confident in what we’re doing when we get on the track and step off our marks and our triangles,” he said. “I think probably, this big, beautiful facility and different color track markings and, you know, all those things, I feel like there was a little less confidence when we got up there to step it off … and we just need to be confident in this moment.”

Bishop was the only senior in the group and was on all three relays. While she admitted she was frustrated by and disappointed with the performances, she said she was appreciative to have had one final chance to compete at UW-La Crosse after making it to state as part of the 4x100 relay last season.

“I mean, we got to the final destination, which is state,” she said “That’s something that teams could only dream of, and we got there. Just experiencing running on this amazing track is something a lot of people can’t do. I think that we have to kind of step back and realize how far we’ve come — just in this season alone — and just be happy of what we did.”

    Rhinelander’s Shyanne Hueckstaedt leaves the starting blocks to begin the Division 2 girls’ 4x100-meter relay at the WIAA state track meet in La Crosse Friday, June 6. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

That was a sentiment echoed by Wyss.

“At the end of the day, all three of those sprint relays ended at state, and they were all top 15. And that is something that we should celebrate,” he said.

“Losing Lexi’s, you know, she was she was the only girl that was a runner on all three of those, and she’s a senior, so we’re going to miss to miss her speed and leadership,” Wyss added.

It was a similar story for Lamers in the high jump, as he was unable to clear the bar in his three attempts at 6 feet and left La Crosse without placing in the event. 

“It’s exciting that this season down here, just being able to take it all in and watch this caliber of competition,” he said. “Obviously, I would have liked to perform better, but it’s more about the experience of just being down here that I appreciate.”

    Rhinelander’s Truman Lamers makes his approach in the Division 2 boys’ high jump at the WIAA state track meet in La Crosse Friday, June 6. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

Lamers, making his first appearance at state, said it was definitely a foreign environment for him jumping at 9:30 a.m. on Friday in front of thousands of spectators.

“It was definitely a new environment for me, jumping early in the morning like this,” he said. “Just never been on this big of a stage before, so that was fun and exciting and just couldn’t get the job done today.” 

“It’s tough. You start at six feet, I think that’s the highest opening height of any division,” Hodag boys’ track coach Aaron Kraemer added. “So it’s really difficult when that’s two inches below his PR and he’s jumping at it right away to start when you’re cold.”

Regardless, Kraemer said he was grateful that Lamers had the opportunity to end his career on the state’s biggest stage.

“I just wanted him to have this experience and come down here and be able to jump in front of all these people and show what he can do,” he said. “I’m extremely proud of him. He’s had a fantastic four years of schooling, obviously, as a student, he’s the salutatorian, he’s a smart kid. I can’t really say anything more about him as an athlete that I haven’t already said about him in the last four years.”

Times were fast during a relatively cool and cloudy two days in La Crosse. Eight state records were broken in Division 2 alone.

“You look all around the amount of state records that were set this weekend, if you’re not coming here to PR, you’re probably not going to be, hitting the podium or hitting the places,” Wyss said. “We talked about it with our relays. You know, even if we had come in and we had run kind of the exact same times that we had ran at sectionals, there’s a chance that we still wouldn’t have made finals. You have to bring that extra level of competitive fierceness, and you got to come here to PR.”

The meet capped off a strong season for the Hodag track team, which won both the boys’ and girls’ Great Northern Conference titles, a boys’ regional title and advanced six entries to state. Of the 10 qualifiers and alternates Rhinelander took the La Crosse, eight are underclassmen. Wyss said the weekend was an invaluable experience for those who will be looking to make it back to state next year.

“I’m hoping they’re hungry,” he said. “I’m hoping they think that, we didn’t come and do what we wanted to do. We need to do what we can to get back here and get another shot at this. I hope that’s the attitude that they’re taking out.” 

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].