Lady Hatchet runners take first place, boys fifth at Rhinelander Invitational

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Freshman Elise Gibeult finishes fifth overall

For the Tomahawk Leader

RHINELANDER – The Tomahawk Hatchet cross country team traveled to a Northwoods neighbor for its season opener at the 16-team Rhinelander Invitational on Thursday, Aug. 24, held at the Rhinelander High School, with the race going through the school forest.

The Lady Hatchets dominated in their first invitational meet of the 2023 season against the large school competition, taking 1st place with 39 points.

The boys took 5th place against stiff competition with 142 points.

Placing their scoring five in the top 20 of the large school race for the Tomahawk girls were Elise Gibeult (5th-22:43), Rachael Reilly (6th-22:47), Halle Derleth (13th-23:36), Alli Palmer (17th-23:44) and Robin Schmidt (20th-23:51).

“It was great to see middle school standout, Elise Gibeult, make her mark in her first high school race by taking fifth overall,” coach Steph Ahrens said. “Being Tomahawk’s first female finisher as a freshman is no small matter. What’s even better is right on her heels was the rest of the girls varsity squad.”

Coach Kurt Reinke said Gibeult “a great first high school race and looked confident, comfortable and poised.”

“Though it’s awesome to see that she’s not alone, the entire girls team ran fantastic. It’s truly wonderful that we have such a deep team,” Reinke stated.

Other finishers for the Hatchets were Faith Derleth (32nd-25:39), Elizabeth Lee (33rd-25:43), Lydia Shaney (34th-25:49), Kambyl Mattke (41st-26:35), Norah Mann (42nd-26:39), Abbie Rosenmeier (43rd-26:46), Reese Molitor (49th-27:06), Abigail Micke (58th-28:29), Jennie Frederickson (72nd-31:02), Kailynn Hanse (74th-32:12) and Summer Gaedtke (77nd-33:08).

Girls’ team scores: Tomahawk-39, Rhinelander-71, Wausau East-74, Westby-88, Lakeland-93, Northland Pines-154, Merrill-DNS, Antigo-DNS, DC Everest-DNS.

Junior Sam Zastrow managed to crack the top 20 finishers in the boys’ race, taking 14th in a time of 19:23. Varsity scorers for the boys were Presley Gutbrod (29th-20:16), Owen Dickrell (37th-20:50), Dominic Boos (49th-21:22) and Trey Morrison (53rd-21:33).

Other finishers for Tomahawk were Nathan Rosenmeier (62nd-22:00), Jeremiah Johnson (68th-22:18), Drew Voermans (92nd-23:45), Bruce Peetz (97th-24:39), Will Boneck (105th-25:52), Elias Albrent (108th-26:43), Ryan Montag (109th-26:47) and Gerard Gorell (128th-27:33).

Boys’ team scores: Lakeland-39, DC Everest-42, Rhinelander-107, Westby-128, Tomahawk-142, Wausau East-156, Antigo-173, Northland Pines-181, Merrill-213.

“The girls’ pack running was a key to their success, as none of these girls are feeling 100% after two weeks of high mileage training,” coach Connor Ahrens said. “The boys may not be happy with their performance, but it’s early, and our young boys’ team learned a lot in the process, which is essential for later success.”

The Lady Hatchet runners took first place at the Rhinelander Invitational on Thursday, Aug. 24. Photos courtesy of Connor Ahrens.

More action

The Tomahawk runners were slated to travel to Nine-Mile Forest in Wausau for the Marathon Invitational on Thursday, Aug. 31.

On Saturday, Sept. 9, the Hatchets will take part in an invitational at Menomonie High School.

Athletes of the Week

Abbie Rosenmeier – “Newcomer to the sport of cross country and freshman Abbie Rosenmeier is making the most of her first season. Not holding back both meets thus far, she has dropped nearly a minute and a half off of her Alumni Scrimmage time to take the 11th spot on the girls’ squad. Her personal record now stands at a 26:46, but the coaching staff has a good feeling that this most likely won’t be the last major improvement Abbie pulls off. Though new to the sport, she is picking up on many of the early teachings and becoming a true student of the sport. Her racing career will continue to thrive due to her high retention of athletic knowledge. Abbie also contributes a caring and kind demeanor to a very unified girls team.”
Dominic Boos – “Moving into the four spot on the varsity squad in his first year running cross country is the enthusiastic junior Dominic Boos. He set a personal record of 21:22, while also beating his Alumni Scrimmage time by 48 seconds. Though he has had track and field experience, this is Dominic’s first year running cross country, but one wouldn’t know it watching him race at Rhinelander. Always displaying a positive attitude and about as friendly as they come, he has proven to be an excellent addition to the Hatchet boys’ squad. Dominic has yet to find his ceiling, and with continued training, one only knows where his speed will take him – an exciting runner to watch this fall, without a doubt.”
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