Gillett’s Alex Peterson finishes 8th at state cross-country championships

Gillett boys claim 8th; Bonduel’s O’Brien places 55th
By: 
Morgan Rode
Sports Editor

Gillett Secondary School’s Alex Peterson placed eighth during the Division 3 boys race to help the Tigers also claim eighth at the 2022 WIAA State Cross-Country Championships on Oct. 29 at The Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids.

Bonduel’s Ben O’Brien also competed in the D3 boys race, coming in 55th.

Petersons lead Gillett boys

The Gillett boys earned their eighth-place finish with a mark of 221.

Alex Peterson capped a strong career and huge senior season with an eighth-place finish in 16 minutes, 30.6 seconds.

The senior was in third after a first mile of 5:05 before moving up to second after a second-mile time of 5:25.

“My coach and I came up with a plan to stick right on the leader, no matter what,” said Peterson. “So I went out in 5:05 which is pretty normal, but the second mile was fast. I think that cost me a little in the end since I was second going into the 400-meter final stretch. I ended eighth, and that’s two spots better than last year, so I’m happy with that for sure.”

“Going into the season I knew I had a pretty good chance at placing high, so realizing those thoughts puts all my hard work into reality. Also, medaling two years in a row is something I thought might be impossible back in sixth grade when I started running. Doing that, again, makes my mental toughness and perseverance so much more rewarding.”

Alex’s brother Evan was the next Gillett boys finisher. Evan Peterson completed the course in 17:29.9 to grab 32nd place.

“It feels so good,” Evan Peterson said of ending his high school career at state. “To qualify four times, I’m blessed to be able to have this opportunity to compete at this meet and on this stage. It’s really cool, especially with the team, a bunch of younger guys too — just getting them here for the first time is really awesome.”

He later noted how it was neat for things to come full circle, after the Peterson brothers were the only freshmen on a state-qualifying team in 2019.

The third Gillett finisher was a freshman, Bradyn Wendorff. He placed 40th in the race with a time of 17:41.5.

The freshman was especially strong later in the race, moving past 17 runners after the opening mile.

“I feel like I did great,” said Wendorff, adding having the Peterson brothers leading the team this year helped him out tremendously. “I used the hills, I used the straightaways, I did what we were trained to do. The finish I think I need to work on a little bit, but that’s for next year.”

Scott Herroux, a sophomore, placed 123rd with a time of 19:51.6, while freshman Chase Anderson was 131st in 20:25.8 to cap the team score.

Freshman Nash Stange (22:04.4) and sophomore Zander Davis (22:21.9) capped the seven-runner team, placing 145th and 146th, respectively.

O’Brien content with state finish

O’Brien earned his 55th-place finish in 17:56.2.

“It was very hard. It was very different with all the guys running,” said O’Brien on his first state run. “I felt like I did pretty good, but I was dying toward the end. I think I gave it my all and finished the season off strong.”

“It’s a very humbling experience. It was a little overwhelming when we started with all the guys, but I just stuck with guys and tried to just keep running as hard as I could.

His first mile was clocked at 5:25 before a second mile of 6:01.

He’s hoping the state finish in a junior season that was a strong one helps him keep pushing even more for his final season.

“Just keep pushing as hard as I’ve been and just set new goals and crush them,” said O’Brien. “Hopefully make it back here next year and hopefully with my team.”

Full state results can be found at www.wiaawi.org/Portals/0/PDF/Results/Cross_Country/2022/d3bstateresults.pdf. More photos from the D3 boys race can be found on the NEW Media Inc. Sports Facebook page at www.facebook.com/NewMediaIncSports.

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