Hatchet harriers deliver phenomenal performances at Marathon, Fall Creek invitationals

/ Sports

For the Tomahawk Leader

RIB MOUNTAIN – The Tomahawk Hatchet cross country team took part in a pair of invitationals earlier this month, and the girls and boys teams finished near or at the top of the field in both competitions.

Marathon Invitational

On Thursday, Sept. 1, Tomahawk traveled to Nine-Mile Recreation Area in Rib Mountain for the 13th annual Marathon Invitational.

Despite the hot conditions, the boys kicked off the race by taking 3rd, prevailing over schools such as D.C. Everest and Auburndale.

The girls team blew the field away, winning by 48 points over the closest competitor in the 14-team field, despite missing the score of their second runner.

“We saw some solid pack running from both the boys and girls and hope to carry this strategy throughout the season,” said coach Steph Ahrens.

The boys team was led by Junior Presley Gutbrod, who took 13th with a time of 19:36. Other scoring finishers for the boys were Sam Zastrow (18th-20:03), Owen Dickrell (23rd-20:29), Ty Anthes (28th-20:48), Taje Casey (32nd-21:12), Jacob Riemer (33rd-21:15) and Brett Borchardt (34th-21:15).

Other finishers were Jeremiah Johnson (40th-21:33), Nathan Rosenmeier (52nd-22:11), Jacob Towle (54th-22:40), Masen Towle (78th-24:39), Gerard Gorell (95th-26:36), Elliot O’Connor (97th-27:10) and Bruce Peetz (103rd-28:05).

Boys team scores: Athens-38, Marathon-94, Tomahawk-109, Prentice-126, Auburndale-132, D.C. Everest-141, Pittsville-155, Waupaca-194, Wittenberg-Birnamwood-217, Assumption-226, Merrill-249, Port Edwards-Inc., Three Lakes-Inc.

The girls placed three in the top ten: Rachael Reilly (3rd-21:29), Serena Reinke (8th-23:44) and Robin Schmidt (9th-23:46). Other scoring finishers for the girls were Halle Derleth (11th-23:59), Alli Palmer (12th-24:08), Marie Gorell (13th-24:21) and Izzy Lee (15th-24:53).

Other Lady Hatchet finishers were Morgan Hansmann (DQ-21:56), Abbi Micke (19th-25:44), Kambyl Mattke (20th-25:54), Faith Derleth (24th-26:12), Lydia Shaney (26th-26:21), Kailynn Hanse (40th-28:20), Summer Gaedtke (53rd-30:09) and Jennie Frederickson (78th-34:26).

Girls team scores: Tomahawk-30, Assumption-78, Marathon-87, Athens-132, Merrill-135, Abbotsford-159, Waupaca-182, Pittsville-186, Wittenberg-Birnamwood-189, Port Edwards-Inc., Nekoosa-Inc., Prentice-Inc., Three Lakes-Inc., Faith-Christian-Inc.

“Yet again the girls followed the race plan to a ‘T’, which resulted in every girl passing more competitors after each mile,” said coach Connor Ahrens.

The Lady Hatchets at the Marathon Invitational. Photos courtesy of Connor Ahrens.

Cricket Invite

On Saturday, Sept. 10, the Hatchet harriers travelled traveled southwest to Fall Creek to compete against eight other schools in the 27th annual Cricket Invite.

For the eighth year in a row and 17th time in the last 18 years, Tomahawk brought home the overall combined score team traveling trophy. Despite the muddy and rainy conditions, the Hatchets swept the varsity meet, winning both races.

“Conditions were far from ideal, as a few of the hills had running streams of water and sliding mud,” said coach Kurt Cordova. “Nevertheless, the kids came through and made it a fun race to compete in.”

The Hatchet boys were led by top ten finishers Presley Gutbrod (3rd-19:20), Sam Zastrow (6th-19:40) and Owen Dickrell (7th-19:46).

The remaining Hatchets were Ty Anthes (11th-20:46), Taje Casey (15th-21:09), Brett Borchardt (16th-21:11), Jacob Riemer (21st-21:54), Nathan Rosenmeier (22nd-22:03), Jeremiah Johnson (23rd-22:11), Jacob Towle (26th-22:28), Bruce Peetz (35th-23:43), Masen Towle (39th-24:09), Gerard Gorell (47th-25:23), Elliot O’Connor (50th-26:07), Cayden Shepler (53rd-27:18) and Eli Albrent (54th-27:42).

The Hatchet girls remained undefeated as they captured their third invitational title of the season, placing all five scorers in the top 15 as medalists. They were led by Rachael Reilly (3rd-21:39) and Morgan Hansmann (6th-22:40), who both placed in the top ten.

Other Lady Hatchets contributing to the victory were Halle Derleth (13th-24:12), Serena Reinke (14th-24:17) and Robin Schmidt (15th-24:21).

The rest of the Lady Hatchet attack included Marie Gorell (18th-24:47), Kambyl Mattke (20th-24:53), Izzy Lee (21st-24:59), Abi Micke (22nd-25:59), Kailynn Hanse (27th-26:53), Summer Gaedtke (37th-29:18), Faith Derleth (DQ-26:30), and Lydia Shaney (DQ-27:32).

Coach Kurt Reinke noted that the Hatchets utilized pack running to the team’s advantage.

“This allowed many of our runners to stay controlled and relaxed until they had to begin making their moves up the hills,” Reinke stated. “We do, however, need to begin seeing more separation in the races when our student-athletes are capable of running those quicker paces.”

“Another victory is a great confidence booster for our kids, yet the field was greatly reduced, having only eight teams to run against compared to 12 or more in years past,” said coach Connor Ahrens.

The Hatchets’ next meet is Saturday, Sept. 17, when Tomahawk will compete in the prestigious 66th annual Smiley Invitational, located at Wausau East High School on the northeast side of Wausau. Racing gets underway at 8:30 a.m. with the boys JV D2/3 combined race.

“The Smiley Invite will be a key determinant of where we stand amongst many of our Division 2 competitors,” Ahrens noted.

Athletes of the Week

Week three: Elizabeth “Izzy” Lee – “Izzy started the race trailing our main girls pack by a few yards, and despite coming across the mile faster than expected, hung on and continued to push. She would go from 22nd to 15th place through the 5000-meter race. Her positive mental attitude both at practices and meets has allowed her to take it all in stride and be a huge positive influence on her teammates; a truly vital component to the makeup of our girls team and their success thus far this season.”
Week three: Taje Casey – Another senior captain leading the way by example was Taje, with his 5th-place team finish solidifying his varsity position. He also masterfully demonstrated the team’s racing strategy, starting the race in 50th place and passing competitors until he found himself in 32nd overall, resulting in a seasonal best time of 21:12. Every team needs a teammate who keeps the team loose and relaxed, and throughout these first three weeks of high mileage training, he has done just that, allowing the team to word hard when necessary while dialing it back when it’s appropriate.”
Week four: Halle Derleth – “Beginning the race as planned with several of her teammates, Halle got off to a comfortable start before beginning her merciless attack upon the unsuspecting runners ahead of her. She went from 21st place at the one mile to 13th when the dust settled, or in Fall Creek’s case, when the grassy field became a mudhole. Aware of the situation the team was in late in the race, she led the charge to pass a few key opponents. Halle’s grit and determination have been key traits of her races, and the coaches are excited to see her pushing the other half of the girls’ varsity team to new heights.”
Week four: Presley Gutbrod – “Presley ran a seasonal best time of 19:20, a fantastic feat seeing the conditions these kids were racing in. Given more distance, all the coaches were convinced that Presley could have taken the entire field for the first time in his career, falling a little short to take 3rd place and finishing his final mile faster than either of his previous two miles, which is a rare achievement, one in which the coaching staff will look for Presley to learn how to push himself earlier in the race, which could lead to a new personal record and maybe a first-place finish.”
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