Topper boys finish as runners-up, girls third at D-SC cross country meet
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RUNNING IN his final Dunn-St. Croix Conference meet, Glenwood City senior Henry Draxler ran a 23:01.8 to finish 45th. —photo by Jacob Maes Photography
MONDOVI – The Glenwood City boys’ and girls’ cross country teams both had a pair of top five individual finishers in the 2021 Dunn-St. Croix Conference held in Mondovi last Thursday.
Junior JJ Williams and senior Austin Nelson finished third and fourth, respectively, to help lead the Hilltopper boys to second place in the conference competition held October 14 at The Valley Golf Course. Glenwood City finished with a score of 52 just eight points behind the winning team from Spring Valley which came out on top in the six-team event after scoring 44 points. There were 65 runners in the boys’ field with defending state champion Parker Schneider, a senior from Durand, capturing the individual crown with a run of 17:02.4, 28 seconds faster than runner-up Ian Hazen of Elk Mound.
Meanwhile, in the girls’ race that featured seven complete squads, Glenwood City scored 88 points to come in third highlighted by fantastic finishes by its senior duo of Bella Simmons and Kendall Schutz. The pair have led the Lady Toppers all season long and it was no different at the conference meet in Mondovi. Simmons placed fourth while Schutz finished fifth in their final D-SC race.
Durand edged out Colfax for the girls’ championship by a mere four points – 51 to 55. Although Colfax junior Molly Heidorn won her third consecutive conference championship following a run of 20:42.6 it was enough to help overcome Durand who had its first six runners finish in the top 14.
In the boys’ race, Williams’ third-place time was an 18:00.8 on the challenging 5,000-meter Valley GC course. Nelson came across the finish line just seven seconds later to complete his race in 18:07.8.
Those two led a contingent of 13 other Glenwood City boys four of which finished between 11th and 22nd.
TOPPER junior Anthony Nelson finished 11th in the 2021 Dunn-St. Croix Conference cross country meet held Thursday, October 14 in Mondovi. Nelson finished with a time of 19:23.4. —photo by Jacob Maes Photography
Junior Anthony Nelson was the third runner to finish for the GC boys taking 11th in 19:23.4. Sophomore Connor Berends was the next Topper to cross the line taking 16th place in 20:08.9. Freshman Ilan Anderson and Zeb Holden complete the top six. Anderson was 21st in 20:23.5 with Holden finishing one spot back with a time of 20:31.9.
Other finishers for the Topper boys included senior Brendan Booth, 28th in 21:05.6; freshman Elliot Springborn, 35th in 22:00.3; junior Owen Bauman, 37th in 22;17.3; senior Henry Draxler 45th in 23:01.8; sophomore Riley Krueger, 47th in 23:39.8; junior Cody Hansen, 50th in 24:01.6; sophomore Xander Jacobsen, 55th in 24:43.9; freshman Tyler Rogers, 57th in 25:25.4; and freshman Evan Hojem, 63rd in 28:53.5.
Bella Simmons time of 21:39.8 placed her fourth in the overall standings of the girls race but tops among the GC lady runners.
Kendall Schutz finished one spot back after running the course in 21:50.1.
It would take some two and a half minutes for the next Glenwood City girl to cross the finish line. Freshman Elsja Meijer came across in 24th place with a time of 24:19.4. Senior Samantha Peterson finished 28th in her final conference competition with a time of 25:07.0.
Another senior, Ella Knops, completed the team’s score when she took 41st in 278:07.4.
The Lady Toppers’ sixth runner, sophomore Haylie Hannah, ran a 27:34.6 to place 44th.
HILLTOPPER SENIOR Samantha Peterson ran toward the finish of last Thursday’s Dunn-St. Croix Conference meet which was held in Mondovi. Peterson place 28th in a time of 25:07.0. —photo by Jacob Maes Photography
Sophomore Savanna Millermon was the final racer for the girls taking 53rd in a time of 31:03.9.
Glenwood City will move on to the WIAA Division 3 sectional competition which is slated for this Saturday, October 23 at Tiffany Creek Elementary in Boyceville. Racing will begin at 11 a.m.