Athens boys sectional champs

Team takes surprise win

By Casey Krautkramer

The Athens varsity boys track and field team won the WIAA Division 3 sectional championship on Thursday for the first time in seven years.

Athens tallied a team-high 50 points at the sectional meet in Rosholt, ahead of runners-up Auburndale with 45. Before Thursday, the Bluejay boys had last won the sectional title in 2015 in Colfax. Winning the sectional championship caught Athens head coach Cheryl Strunk and her boy athletes by surprise.

“Winning sectionals was truthfully not our major purpose at the meet, but rather getting as many athletes moving onto the state track meet,” Strunk admitted. “The irony is if you coach athletes to do the best they can at sectionals and get as many of them to the state, then you can win sectionals as a team.

“When the 3,200-meter run was over and Connor Sheahan had secured a third-place finish, we were in the mode of taking care of our athletes, taking down the tent and thinking about all the details that go into preparing for the state track meet. When we found out we won sectionals, we were in a bit of a shock and couldn’t believe it, but then we started adding up all the points and it made sense, but we were still amazed we’d won sectionals. We are so very proud of the great effort of all the boys in the sectional track meet.”

The top four athletes who place in each event qualify for the state track and field championships this Friday, June 3, and Saturday, June 4, at UWLa Crosse.

Athens boy pole vaulters racked up 18 points for the team at the Rosholt sectional. Defending WIAA boys state pole vault champion Caden Decker won Thursday’s sectional event with 14 feet, three inches, to gain 10 points for the team. Bluejays sophomore Ryan Peel will join Decker at the state meet, after placing fourth at the sectional with 12 feet, six inches. Senior Aiden Guralski’s sixth-place finish in the pole vault didn’t qualify him for the state meet, but he still gained three points to help the Bluejays win the sectional championship.

Decker is seeded No. 1 among Division 3 boy pole vaulters heading into the state track and field championships. He obtained 13 feet, nine inches to win the pole vault state title last season. Decker has continued to improve on his height this season, and now he’ll attempt to win back-to-back state pole vault championships while trying to also break Daniel Drewek’s Athens school record of 15 feet, one inch.

On Thursday, Athens junior Aiden Janke tallied 18 team points for the boys team by winning the shot put with 51 feet, three inches and taking second place in the discus with 146 feet, three inches. Janke is seeded No. 1 among Division 3 pole vaulters heading into the state track and field championships.

Bluejays junior Connor Sheahan accumulated 14 points for the boys squad by placing second in the 1,600-meter run in four minutes, 37.12 seconds and third in the 3,200-meter run in 10 minutes, 14.38 seconds.

Coach Strunk said junior Connor Komarek was on the Athens boys 4x100-meter relay team that placed 11th at sectionals, and although it didn’t score any team points, he competed and was a major part of the team’s success.

Raider girls runners-up

Marathon’s varsity girls track and field squad took second place at Thursday’s WIAA Division 3 Rosholt sectional with 51 points, behind only Oshkosh Lourdes Academy with 55.

Red Raiders senior Jenna Aschbrenner tallied 20 total points for girls team by winning the pole vault with 10 feet, six inches and placing second in the high jump with five feet, three inches. She just missed qualifying for state in the long jump with a fifthplace finish.

Aschbrenner is seeded No. 3 in the high jump and No. 4 in the pole vault heading into this weekend’s Division 3 state track and field championships in La Crosse. She was also a member of Marathon’s sectional-winning 4x100meter relay team that scored 10 points for the team. The 4x100-meter relay won the race in 52.32 seconds and also includes starting team members in senior Alexandria Kraimer and juniors Jersey Lobner and Grace Kahon. Alternate relay team members are senior Vanessa Krueger and sophomore Alisha Blenker.

Kahon also took second place in the 100-meter dash in 12.87 seconds to ad- vance to the state tournament.

The Red Raider girls 4x800-meter relay team also qualifies for state with a third-place finish in 10 minutes, 15.65 seconds. Relay squad members are seniors McKinnley Marks, Julianna Thurs and Laci Hoeksema and freshman Shilo Blake, along with alternates junior Emma DeBroux and freshman Calyse Fieri.

For the Marathon boys, junior Drake Carlson advances to the state tournament in the mixed 100-meter dash wheelchair, mixed 400-meter dash wheelchair, mixed 800-meter run wheelchair and the mixed shot put wheelchair events.

Red Raiders senior Michael Kindlarski took third place in the sectional 110-meter hurdles in 15.72 seconds, junior Matthew Annis was third in the 400-meter dash in 52.63 and junior Griffin Treankler was third in the 300-meter hurdles in 41.17. All three of them advance to state.

Marathon’s boys 4x400-meter relay team qualifies for state with a fourthplace sectionals finish in three minutes, 33.38 second. Relay squad members are juniors Jaron Gage, Parker Mathwich, Annis and Treankler. Alternates are senior Owen Marks and sophomore Andrew Glennon.

Brehm, Schnelle lead ‘Cats

Junior Morgan Schnelle led the Edgar girls at the Division 3 sectional by winning both the 100-meter dash in 12.82 seconds and the 200-meter dash in 26.28.

Schnelle was also an integral member of the Edgar girls 4x200-meter relay team that placed second in one minute, 49.14 seconds. Other relay team members are junior Rachel Schneider and sophomores Malana Koehler and Brooke Imhoff, along with alternates in senior Malia Hoesly and junior Amber Skrzypcak.

The Wildcat girls 4x100-meter relay team of Schneider, Koehler, Imhoff and Skrzypcak also qualifies for state with a fourth-place finish in 52.97 seconds.

For the Edgar boys, senior Everet Brehm took second place at sectionals in the triple jump with 43 feet, 3-1/2 inches and third place in the long jump with 20 feet, 1-1/2 inches.

The Edgar boys 4x400-meter relay team won the event in three minutes, 30.98 seconds. Relay team members are senior Ayden Weisenberger, junior Avery Normington and sophomores Teegan Streit and Kohlbe Weisenberger. Alternates are sophomore Karter Butt and freshman Jase Apfelbeck.

Wright breaks record

Stratford’s girls and boys track and field teams competed in Thursday’s WIAA Division 2 sectional meet in Rice Lake. It was here that Stratford senior girl Jaidyn Wright broke the school record in the triple jump with 35 feet, eight inches, which was good for second place at sectionals.

Wright qualifies for the state tournament in back-to-back years in the triple jump.

Tigers junior boy Conner Weigel advances to state with a fourth-place finish in the 400-meter dash in 51.35 seconds. Stratford’s boys 4x800-meter relay team took second place in eight minutes, 19.49 seconds. Relay team members are senior Elijah Lucio, junior Lance Krieg, sophomore Noah Lucio and freshman Garrett Zuelke.

The Tiger boys 4x400-meter relay team placed third in three minutes, 30.32 seconds at sectionals. Relay squad members are Elijah and Noah Lucio, Weigel and freshman Jett Schoenherr.