Boyceville cross country teams seek daily improvement
By Cara L. Dempski
BOYCEVILLE — Some teams have specific goals at the start of every season.
Boyceville cross country coach Corey Day said his teams’ goals for 2017 are very simple.
“We want to improve every day running, and in school,” he explained. “This group is really an unknown to me. I feel like we are off to a great start, but we are inexperienced, so it is hard to say until I see them perform.”
No one can blame Day for this season’s unknowns after he graduated six seniors off last year’s team and picked up just three freshmen for this season. Emma Harnisch, Kiel Anderson, Michael Chich, Maxwell Engel, Jerod Nelson and Samuel Retz all walked across the stage as graduates this past May.
Anderson and Retz were named all-conference runners, and Day said they were great leaders. The entire crew of six had a tremendous amount of experience after having been part of Day’s program starting in Middle School.
This year’s senior class boasts seven runners, six of whom are letter winners. Rian Corr, Ryker Ferg, Emmett Kapsner and Casey Owen will provide leadership and experience on the boys’ team, while Lauryn Dominic and Emily Voelker will head up the girls’ team.
Voelker and Corr each earned all-conference honors in 2016, with the Voelker landing on the second-team all-Dunn-St. Croix, and Corr taking an honorable mention award.
Senior Brandon Kenefick joins the team this season after placing ninth in pole vault at the 2017 WIAA State Track and Field meet.
“He was a surprise,” Day said. “He has never run cross country, but placed ninth in pole vault at state, so he is a gamer.”
Marissa Dormanen rounds out this year’s senior class.
Juniors Justin Lombardo and Brennan Wheeldon are the Bulldogs’ only representatives from the Class of 2019 on the team this year, and are hoping for varsity spots.
Sophomore Steven Rasmussen is showing Day he can keep up with the varsity group, which bodes well for his chances this year. He is joined by classmates Naomi Hillman and Noelle Wheeldon, both letter winners, on the team this season. Hillman earned second-team all-conference honors in her first season of high school competition.
Three freshmen, Nathaniel Chich, Samuel Chich and Nathan Corr, join the boys’ team for the 2017 season and are already proving to be promising runners. Corr bested his older brother, Rian, last Thursday at the Bulldogs’ season-opening home meet.
With the blend of experienced and inexperienced runners on this year’s Boyceville boys’ and girls’ squads, Day knows success will depend on how fast the inexperienced develop and how much the experienced runners can help that process.
The Bulldog coach believes the Durand Panthers will again dominate the boys’ conference races in 2017, and listed the Elk Mound girls’ as the conference’s top competitors due to their depth and returning talent.
Corey Day is entering his ninth season as head coach of Boyceville’s cross country teams.
The Bulldogs have a front-loaded schedule this season, with three different meets in the span of only a few weeks. It is something he hopes helps get his team accustomed to running the 5k races.
“This team is really an unknown, many of them have not run the 5k distance,” Day explained. “It will be good to get some races under their belts.”
Boyceville competed in its own Boyceville Cross Country Alumni Invitational last Thursday at Tiffany Creek Elementary. The teams ran yesterday at Bruce, and are scheduled for a meet at St. Croix Central August 31. They will then take a short break to prepare for a race at Rice Lake September 12.
2017 Roster
Seniors: Rian Corr, Ryker Ferg, Emmett Kapsner, Brandon Kenefick, Casey Owen, Lauryn Dominic, Marissa Dormanen and Emily Voelker.
Juniors: Justin Lombardo and Brennan Wheeldon.
Sophomores: Steven Rasmussen, Naomi Hillman and Noelle Wheeldon.
Freshmen: Nathaniel Chich, Samuel Chich and Nathan Corr.