Payton Christopher (front) and Raina Arndt both try to move up. Photo by Amy Robinson.
Both the Dodgeville-Mineral Point girls and boys cross country teams finched 6th in Division 2 at Saturday’s Veronas invitational.
The girls totaled 165 points to winning Monroe’s 79.
The rest of the D2 scores were: McFarland 84, Mount Horeb 93, West Salem 102, Aquinas 103, Dodge- Point 165, Onalaska 171, Stoughton 190, Fort Atkinson 193, Baraboo 231, Edgewood 241.
The top runner in D2 was Mount Horeb’s Isla Odgers in 19:12.5, followed by McFarland’s Ada Geiger in 19:49.8.
Dodge-Point’a Avalee Langreck was her team’s top finisher in 4th place.
Dodge-Point results: Avalee Langreck 4th in 20:14.4, Payton Christopher 29th in 22:44.1, Raina Arndt 40th in 23:45.0, Lilly Houtakker 44th in 23:57.5, Iliana Zizis 49th in 24:15.3, Chloe Eastman 58th in 25:19.6, Elise Engel 66th in 27:15.7.
The boys D2 race was won by Monroe with 71 points to Fort Atkinson’s 77. Then came Baraboo 77, McFarland 78, West Salem 116, Dodge-Point 155, Mount Horeb 179, Stoughton 181, Onalaska 260, Aquinas 294, Arcadia 39 (one runner).
Dodge-Point’s Johnny Robinson led the team taking 4th.
DP Results: Johnny Robinson 4th in 16:50.6, Leif Nelson 12th in 17:58.9, Nolan Allendorf 39th in 39 19:28.9, Jack Tippett 46th in 19:52.6 3:56.0, Rhet Spurley 51st in 20:08.1, Jack Christopher 55th in 20:32.1,L o g a n Swinehart 5th in 20:52.9.
The D2 race was won by Fort Atkinson’s Vinny Sitklewitz in 16:26.6, followed by West Salem’s Evan Berra in 16:38.5.
In commenting about the race, Dodge-Point coach Denny McGraw said, “The weather cooled off a little for the huge Verona Invite on September 5. The runners got exposed to what it is like to run in such a big race, with 33 teams participating. They ran everyone together, then divided the teams into divisions for scoring to see how the teams stacked up against future competition in your division. We are excited to see how hard everyone is working at the start of the season. Dealing with the heat has been a challenge, but the good work ethic of the runners keeps them challenging themselves.
“Varsity Girls ended up 6th in Division 2. Sophomore Avalee Langreck finished 4th by running with some of the top runners to finish so well. Senior Payton Christopher (29th) continues to be a strong leader and ran well. Junior Raina Arndt (40th) put forth a good effort and did well throughout the race. Senior Lilly Houtakker (44th) continues to work hard and improve. Freshmen Iliana Zizis (49th) did very well as she learns how to run in a 5K varsity race. Senior Chloe Eastman (58th) and Freshmen Elise Engle (66th) rounded out the varsity runners.
“JV Girls included Senior Faye Schuette, Freshmen Adalynn Pagenkopf, Freshmen Autumn Pagenkopf, Sophomore Abbey Finley, Senior Brynnlin Cartwright, and Freshmen Bristol Cartwright.
“Varsity Boys finished 6th in Division 2. Senior Johnny Robinson finished 4th with a strong run and good team leadership. Junior Leif Nelson (12th) continues to show that summer miles pay off. Junior Nolan Allendorf (39th) put forth another good effort. Freshmen Jack Tippett (46th) is figuring out the 5K race as he improves. Senior Rhet Spurley (51st) is improving each practice and race. Freshmen Jack Christopher (55th) and Junior Logan Swinehart (55th) rounded out the varsity runners.
“JV Boys included Senior Elliot Hesseling, Sophomore Brayden McWilliams, Freshmen Brady Blackford, Freshmen Levi Dury, Junior Ben Engel, Sophomore Owen Michek, Sophomore Murphy Keyes.
Saturday, September 12, the teams will be participating in the River Valley Invite at the Little Springs Golf Course – 9:05 Varsity Girls, 10:10 Varsity Boys, 10:40 JV Girls, 11:15 JV Boys, 11:45 Middle School Girls, 12:05 Middle School Boys.
The teams are at the River Valley Invitational Saturday.
