Expectations remain high this fall for the Runnin’ Raiders

A new cross country season has arrived along with a few new faces in Medford’s program.

But as the team works through its first week of practice for the fall season of 2021, something that hasn’t changed are the expectations.

Under ninth-year head coach Kevin Wellman and assistant Sherry Meyer, the Raiders have become a model of consistency in the Great Northern Conference and beyond with four straight girls GNC titles, one boys title, one boys sectional title, two girls sectional titles and the girls state championship of 2018.

With seven returning letter winners and another former contributor back in the fold, the girls certainly appear ready to make a run at another GNC championship and more post-season success. The boys don’t have much depth, but they do have one of the area’s best in senior Joe Sullivan and a solid sophomore class that should allow the Raiders to remain competitive as long as they stay healthy.

“These kids are here to do it because they love it,” Wellman said Tuesday, the second official day of practice. “We might not have to coach them too hard because they’re going to ride each other if they’re slacking off.”

“Everybody is very committed and dedicated,” Meyer added. “That’s what it takes. They give 100%. And, they don’t leave anybody behind. They’re a great group of kids as a team. They’re cheering each other on, it doesn’t matter who’s first or coming in wherever.”

In the first few days, the rosters showed 12 girls and seven boys out for the team, which certainly leaves room for more who may still have interest. Medford opens the season next Thursday, Aug. 26 at Prentice-Rib Lake’s Timm’s Hill Invitational, which starts with the middle school race at 4:30 p.m., followed by the first varsity race.

The girls lost two key runners to graduation, UW-Green Bay recruit Alicia Kawa and Ellee Grunwald, but bring back a group they feel shouldn’t miss a beat in the drive for GNC title number five.

“They’re going to be impressive,” Wellman said. “I think we’re going to have nine or 10 girls fighting for varsity spots.”

Leading the charge for the girls are seniors Jennifer Kahn and Alexis Fleegel, three-time letter winners and members of both of Medford’s state teams in 2018 and 2019. Juniors Bryn Fronk and Brooke Rudolph are two-time letter winners and also ran in the 2019 Division 2 state meet. Meredith Richter leads the sophomore class, coming off a season where she took third in the GNC meet, one spot ahead of Kawa, and earned firstteam all-conference honors. Kahn, Rudolph and Fronk all earned secondteam All-GNC awards last fall.

Sophomore Ella Daniels was in the seventh or eighth position for the team through much of last season and is poised for better results in 2021. Natasha Butt was a letter winner as well and sophomore Kylie Potvin is back after joining midway through last year.

The team welcomes back a third senior, Tyra Wicke, who competed well as a freshman in 2018 and welcomes in a promising freshman in Ella Dassow. Joselyn Torres and Lydia Way also return after spending time with the program a year ago.

The coaches view Fleegel and Kahn as good leaders who will set a strong tone in practice.

“I know Alexis and Jennifer have set some pretty hefty goals for themselves this season,” Meyer said.

Wellman said he was impressed with the shape Wicke came into the season in and Dassow has impressed as the program’s lone 2021 freshman at this point.

“Ella worked really hard this summer,” Meyer said. “She definitely was ready to be comfortable being uncomfortable. She did. She came up to me one day and said thanks for pushing me. She was definitely uncomfortable, but she wanted to stay right up there with the girls and she did during the speed work.”

The girls also may gain some motivation by how last year ended. Well on their way to a third straight state team berth, the Raiders were switched to Division 1 midway through the season after the WIAA redrew the dividing lines to account for the teams that weren’t participating in cross country in the fall due to COVID issues or concerns. Instead of being the heavy favorite in Division 2 sectional competition, the Raiders took second in the Medford subsectional to advance to the sectional in Chippewa Falls, where they finished third behind Menomonie and Marshfield and didn’t get any individual qualifiers through either.

“Yeah, it does bother me,” Wellman said. “I’m still bitter. I just look at it this way. Joey’s a senior this year so he’s got the redemption year. But for kids like Alicia Kawa, I think our girls team last year was every bit as good as our state championship team.”

“We got a tough break last year, but I think it’s just going to make them better this year,” Meyer said. “Every time our girls get beat like that, they come back.” Sullivan is the unquestioned leader for the boys. He was the GNC’s individual champion last fall and made his second straight state appearance in 2020, finishing a respectable 33rd in the Division 1 boys meet hosted by Hartland Arrowhead. His time was 16:39.6, which would’ve placed fifth at the Division 2 meet at Colby High School. After qualifying for state in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs this spring in track, his goals remain high for this fall. “He knows how to compete, which is really fun in racing,” Meyer said. “You can just see he knows exactly how to strategize and knows exactly what he’s going to do and he executes it very well. He’s very fun to watch compete.” Sophomores Tanner Hraby, Nick Steliga and Logan Gubser look to build off strong freshman sea- sons. Hraby was a second-team All-GNC performer.

“I think Tanner is going to be really good,” Wellman said. “I think Logan is definitely going to make some strides. Steliga is going to be good.”

The Raiders bring back junior Lucas Borman, who improved by five minutes from the start of last season to the end. They get some welcomed additions with senior Steve Hraby and junior Josh Clark.

“It’s not great in numbers, but it’s a great team in quality,” Wellman said.

In the GNC, Medford’s girls outscored Tomahawk by 14 to win last year’s championship race hosted by the Hatchets. None of Tomahawk’s five scorers in that meet were seniors, so it could be Medford’s biggest challenger this time around. Northland Pines had, by far, the league’s top runner in freshman superstar Nora Gremban, but she unfortunately got quarantined right before the GNC race.

Medford’s boys took third a year ago behind league champion Tomahawk and Lakeland. Unlike the girls, that Hatchet team was senior dominated with five of its top seven scorers having graduated, leaving this year’s race with a more wide-open feel.

Before the Oct. 16 meet, which Lakeland will host, the Raiders are looking forward to getting back into big invitationals and some of the regular-season tests they lost out on during last fall’s abnormal season. “It will be really nice to get back to a normal season,” Wellman said. “Even just going up to Timm’s Hill and racing against more than one team will be nice. Nine Mile (Sept. 2) will be a good meet to see how the conference looks because it’s mostly conference schools there. Smiley (Sept. 18) will put us against some of the elite programs. That will give us a good measure. Griak (Sept. 24) is going to be great for our top-end kids.”

Medford’s Jennifer Kahn, Tyra Wicke, Brooke Rudolph, Alexis Fleegel and Bryn Fronk push through a short sprint on the track Tuesday morning.

BY MATT FREYSPORTS EDITOR

MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS

MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS