Steinke punches ticket to State for Cadott runners

Cadott sophomore Beau Steinke got out behind the pack on his home course, Oct. 26, for Sectional action, but was able to correct and come in fifth, to qualify to compete at State. Photo by Ginna Young

By Ginna Young

In their last meet as a team, the Cadott cross country program hosted 23 other schools, Oct. 26, on their home course. Although neither the boys, nor girls teams advanced onward, each athlete gave their best effort, with the boys placing seventh and the girls in ninth.

“It was a calm day, and the sun was shining and proved to be a perfect day to run,” said coach Dan Yeager.

Taking individual honors for the Hornets, was sophomore Beau Steinke, who led the team with a new personal best of 16:54, crossing the line in fifth, out of 131 competitors. That not only qualified him for State competition, but also met his goal of the season.

Coming in next for the Hornets, was junior Saibyn Will, who finished 37th (18:42), just a second off his season high. Freshman Jacob Pilgrim was right behind, in 38th (18:53), while sophomore Jon Phelps ended the season on a high note, setting a new personal best for 61st place (19:35).

Sophomores Kaden Roen and Garrett Engel were nec-kand-neck, with Roen crossing for 75th (20:06) and Engel in 77th (20:15). Finally, sophomore Klayton Handrick rounded out the team, placing 104th and just missing his all-time personal record, with a time of 22:08.

“This team will have every athlete return next year, and we are excited to see them put work in over the summer, to help us meet our goals,” said Yeager.

On the girls’ side, senior Lyla Weggen claimed top honors, ending in 21st (22:14), setting a new best, while senior Cortney Weggen battled injury to place 38th (23:20). Senior McKenna Steinke was right on her heels, setting a new best by 39 seconds, running the race in 23:21 and placing 40th.

Senior Mia Weggen came next, for 69th (24:35), in her best time of the season. Freshman Saffron Riley-Starck ran strong, and shattered her old personal best by nearly a minute and a half, with a time of 24:46. Sophomore Tessa York and junior Marley Mengel finished mere seconds apart, placing 92nd and 94th, respectively, with times of 27:44 and 27:54.

“We will miss our seniors, as they move on to the next chapter of their lives and are hopeful, as we look to the future,” said Yeager.

Yeager and his squad are also grateful to those who donated their time to the home event, as well as Whispering Pines Golf, for allowing Cadott to use their course and being so accommodating at every step of the way.

“Without invested families, we would not have been able to successfully pull this off,” said Yeager.

The Hornets aren’t done yet, as Steinke will compete Saturday, Nov. 2, at 2 p.m., as part of Division 3, at the State course in Wisconsin Rapids.

“Now, we’ll look to cheer Beau on, as he heads to Rapids, to give his all,” said Yeager.