Getting a taste of section 8A competition

Submitted by
Coach Sariina Kalli

Park Rapids Invitational Cross Country Meet
Monday, October 19, 2009

Girls Varsity 3850 meters
3rd Victoria Alexander 14:47
11th Emily Fraser 15:21
12th Saragh Fraser 15:22
29th Skylar Arpin 16:11
62nd Sara Achen 18:18
66th Kendall Ericksen 18:23
68th Katelyn Ericksen 18:37
76th Melissa Gutenkunst 22:07 JV
Girls Varsity Team
1 Perham 35
2 Park Rapids Area 72
3 Lake of the Woods 109
4 Roseau 120
5 Warroad 126
6 Pequot Lakes 149
7 West Central Area 163
8 Thief River Falls 204
9 Hawley/U-H 232
10 Lake Park/Audubon 272
11 Pelican Rapids 273

Girls JV 3850 meters
13th Katie Laugtug 19:09
16th Beth Crompton 21:52
19th Lexi Ubel 22:53
23rd Amber Stavig 27:43

Girls Junior High 3050 meters
1st Elizabeth Fraser 13:55
No team place

Boys Varsity 4850 meters
73rd Bryan Hasbargen 20:13
74th Dyson Dahl 20”46
75th Nolan Short 20:49
79th Ben Washburn 21:43
83rd Eduardo Thome 23:47
84th Zach Lockner 23:53
85th Max Kasberger 25:20
86th AJ Washburn 25:39 JV

Boys Varsity Team
1 Perham 28
2 Pequot Lakes 84
3 Thief River Falls 89
4 Warroad 123
5 Bagley/Fosston 153
6 Roseau 160
7 West Central 189
8 Pelican Rapids 199
Wadena-Deer Creek 235
10 Park Rapids Area 239
11 Hawley/U-H 273
12 Lake of the Woods 358

Coach's Corner
Park Rapids race officials announced all courses were at least 150 meters short, as they changed the course to avoid an overly wet area. No PRs were recorded because of this adjustment.
The varsity girls got a real taste of what the Section 8A meet in Bagley will be like, as powerhouses Perham and Park Rapids were in the mix today. The Bears’ top four runners, all Canadians, finished in the top 30. Our next four girls are vying for only three spots on varsity: seventh graders Sara Achen and Kendall Ericksen, and seniors Katelyn Ericksen and Katie Laugtug. It will be interesting to see who will make that top seven for Oct. 30.
Although the varsity boys finished with one of the shortest time spans of the season – 3 minutes, 34 seconds between the first and fifth runners – they still finished at the bottom of a strong field of teams. However, everyone except exchange student Eduardo Thome will be back for the 2010 season, and the experience they are getting at running as pack now will prove valuable for them in the future.