MCDONALD'S SWNEWS4U.COM GAME OF THE WEEK (Oct. 27–Nov. 3)
BOSCOBEL GIRLS WINS WIAA CROSS COUNTRY D3 STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
WISCONSIN RAPIDS — The Boscobel Bulldogs cross country teams had an amazing performance at the WIAA State Cross Country Championship Meet at The Ridges Golf Course at Wisconsin Rapids Saturday.
The Boscobel girls concluded the state meet by winning the Division 3 state championship in the final race of the day with a score of 71 points.
Valders (108), Oshkosh Lourdes (110), Kickapoo/La Farge (139) and Burlington Catholic Central (173) rounded out the top-5 team scores.
This is the Boscobel girls’ fourth cross country state championship in school history (2002, 2004, 2007, 2021).
Boscobel opened the D3 girls with a goal of starting off strong, as they have all season, and to keep the pressure on the top teams in the field, including #1-ranked Oshkosh Lourdes and #3-Valders.
Right away the Lady Bulldogs looked focused as they raced through the state course, and when they reached the first mile they were in first place and maintained that ranking at mile number two.
In the last 400 meters of the course spectators started to cheer as the first pack of athletes appeared as they sprinted to the finish line.
Freshman Nora Jillson was the top finisher for the Bulldogs finishing in 6th place with a time of 19:55, followed by sophomore Aleya Kliesner (16th, 20:28), seniors Abri Brown (26th, 20:42) and Avery Brown (32nd, 20:50), junior Skyler Carlin (63rd, 21:37), sophomore Lilah Glasbrenner (74th, 21:55) and junior Easton Carlin (122nd, 23:43).
Now the wait began as the top teams gathered near the scoreboard, as well as many Boscobel fans, waiting to see how the Bulldogs finished.
Soon the standings were displayed one team at a time. The girls held hands as they looked at the scoreboard that showed Oskhosh Lourdes finishing 3rd, then Valders finishing 2nd, and then Boscobel finishing in first place!
The team all jumped in the air in unison as they celebrated the victory, and quickly the tears of joy started to flow as the girls hugged coaches, parents, family members, and friends who made the trip to Wisconsin Rapids.
Jillson became the sixth girl in school history to finish in the top 10 at the state meet, finishing sixth out of 149 runners with a time of 19:55.0.
The other podium finishers were Lynne Fitzgerald in 1979 (4th), 1980 (6th), and 1981 (1st), Tasha Utzig in 2001 (2nd), Teesha Moret in 2004 (9th), Keely Foley in 2011 (9th) and 2014 (3rd), and teammate Abri Brown in 2019 (7th).
“We worked really hard to get where we are today and we had faith from the start that we would do well, and we did,” said Jillson. “I’m so happy for the seniors to finish out their career as state champs.”
When asked about her finish she added, “I just kept hearing everyone saying how many girls I needed to pass to podium, so I started passing, and they didn’t react. So, I just kept doing that and finished as hard as I could.”
“This one was very special because of the people that were there with me,”said senior Abri Brown, who competed in her third cross country state meet. “ My seventh place finish in 2019 was awesome, but winning it with a team was much more awesome.”
“It was the greatest experience of a lifetime,” said Avery Brown. “Being a senior and knowing it was my last race I knew I had to give it my all. I wanted to run a race that I will always want to remember and that’s what happened. That day will be a day I will never forget.”
“I had a feeling we would win.” said Skyler Carlin.
“We were definitely nervous” said Glasbrenner. “But I felt that we were also confident and we could definitely count on each other.”
“I was just focused on racing well for the seniors and for coach,” said Kliesner.
“When I found out we had won state, after we had been waiting at the finish, it was easily one of the most exhilarating, happiest moments of my life,” added Easton Carlin. “As soon as the board light up with Boscobel in first, I started crying tears of joy. It’s great to know everyone was there cheering for our team and supporting us to our victory. I appreciate every athlete, parent, coach, and friend that supported me and the team along the way.”
The Boscobel boys raced in the third race of the day with the team hoping to get a good start and to then build momentum as they made their way through the course.
At the 1-mile mark the boys were in fourth place, and at the second mile marker the team slipped to sixth. Unfortunately, for the Bulldogs it just wasn’t their day as the team placed 10th overall out of 16 teams.
The team was lead by seniors Ben Bohringer (58th, 18:09), Levi Glasbrenner (70th, 18:20)and (86th, 18:43), followed by sophomore Gabe Davis (94th, 18:51), junior Hayden Schott (96th, 18:53), freshman Saywer Smith (102nd, 19:01) and sophomore Tucker Schmid-Cox (131st, 19:55).
Valders won the D3 boys team championship with 78 points followed by Grantsburg (85), Ozaukee (158), Poynette (164) and Brookfield Academy (176).
“We didn’t have the finish we wanted at state,” said Glasbrenner, “but we are proud of our accomplishments in our four years and have so many great memories and got to do it with coach Reynolds.”
“The state meet was full of emotion for our teams on Saturday,” said head coach Skyler Reynolds. “The boys went out and gave every ounce of effort they had, and we were proud of them for getting in the mix early on. For our seniors, it was their last race, and no better place to finish their incredible careers as three-time defending conference champions, and two-time sectional champions.
“For the girls, they left little doubt in the minds of the large crowd of people watching the final race of the day. They were on a mission from start to finish, and dropped one of the most impressive performances in Division 3 history. Watching the girls huddled together at the finish area, celebrating with our fans and their families is something I will remember forever. We would like to thank the community and school administration for making this such a special season.”
“The state meet is always such an exciting day for the fans, parents, and coaches,” added assistant coach Fritz. “I’m so proud of the guys for going out after it. They knew that if they didn’t get out fast we were in trouble. They gave us everything that they had.
“The girls did what they have done all season long; get out fast, run together, and hang on to their spots. The state race was exactly that. They ran so tough and put it all together to bring home the gold. I couldn’t be more proud of the girls. It’s so much fun to get to work with those kids, coach Reynolds, and coach Jillson each and every day.”
WIAA Division 3 State Championships
(from Saturday, Oct. 30 @ The Ridges Golf Course, Wisconsin Rapids)
(Girls, 5,000 meters)
Team scores: 1.Boscobel 71, 2.Valders 108, 3.Oshosh Lourdes 110, 4.Kickapoo/La Farge 139, 5.Burlington Catholic Central 173, 6.Lancaster 205, 7.Weyauwega–Fremont 215, 8.Brookfield Academy 223, 9.Durand 237, 10.Wisconsin Rapids Assumption 238, 11.Colby 242, 12.Bonduel 254, 13.Colfax 287, 14.Cameron 307, 15.Phillips 309, 16.Grantsburg 352.
Top individuals: 1.Elsie Kmecak (Catholic Central) 19:47.7, 2.Abby Bartel (Weyauwega–Fremont) 19:50.2, 3.Autumn Michalski (Chequamegon) 19:52.1, 4.Hannah Welch (Valders) 19:53.0, 5.Brooklyn Luebke (Manitowoc Lutheran) 19:54.2.
Top area finishers: 6.Nora Jillson (Boscobel) 19:55.0, 11.Mallory Olmstead (Lancaster) 20:09.8, 16.Aleya Kliesner (Boscobel) 20:28.4, 20.Bridee Burks (Lancaster) 20:35.2, 26.Abri Brown 20:42.4.
Boscobel (71): 6.(4).Nora Jillson 19:55.0, 16.(8).Aleya Kliesner 20:28.4, 26.(13).Abri Brown 20:42.4, 32.(16).Avery Brown 20:50.2, 63.(30).Skyler Carlin 21:37.7, 74.(39).Lilah Glassbrenner 21:55.0, 122.(83).Easton Carlin 23:43.5.
(Boys, 5,000 meters)
Team scores: 1.Valders 78, 2.Grantsburg 78, 3.Ozaukee 158, 4.Poynette 164, 5.Brookfield Academy 176, 6.Sheboygan Area Lutheran 185, 7.Stevens Point Pacelli 196, 8.La Crosse Aquinas 210, 9.Spring Valley 213, 10.Boscobel 222, 11.Ladysmith 241, 12.Chippewa Falls McDonell Central 279, 13.Athens 283, 14.Kickapoo/La Farge 297, 15.Marathon 334, 16.Auburndale 339.
Top individuals: 1.Shane Griepentrog (Valders) 15:38.6, 2.Clay Taylor (Valders) 16:14.1, 3.Dan Anderson (McDonell Central) 16:15.4.
Area top finishers: 8.Carter Scholey (Belleville) 16:52.5, 18.Nick Switzer (Riverdale) 17:22.5, 29.Mason Aide (Iowa–Grant) 17:36.9, 38.Rhett Reuter (Darlington) 17:52.0, 52.George West (Darlington) 18:03.3.
Boscobel: 58.(26).Ben Bohringer 18:09.3, 70.(34).Levi Glasbrenner 18:20.4, 86.(48).Brady Smith 18:43.1, 94.(56).Gabe Davis 18:51.3, 96.(58).Hayden Schott 18:53.8, 102.(64).Sawyer Smith 19:01.3, 131.(93).Tucker Schmid-Cox 19:55.2.
