Gillett girls win M&O Cross-Country Meet behind trio

The Gillett Secondary School girls cross-country team won the Marinette & Oconto Conference Meet on Thursday in Pembine.

Sylvia Hansen, Carleigh Kaczmarek and Ryann Wagner claimed first, second and third place, respectively, to lead the girls team to the top finish.

Gillett’s boys team didn’t qualify for a team score, but all three of runners placed in the top 10, led by a first-place finish from Derek Hanson.

Hansen won the girls race with a time of 21 minutes, 29.3 seconds. The M&O Meet started three years ago, and Hansen has won each race.

“Today’s race was great. I felt like I was going to have a good race because I felt good at practice all week. Today I felt strong, fast and relaxed,” said Hansen. “It was so great to watch my teammates follow up right behind me and work hard today as well.”

Kaczmarek and Wagner finished in 21:39.2 and 21:54.4, respectively.

Megan Wagner (23:42) and Alaina Herzog (24:05.9) rounded out the team score, placing ninth and 11th, respectively.

Hanson won his second M&O title after posting a time of 17:44.8. The senior won the first-ever M&O Meet as a sophomore.

“Tonight’s race went very well from a strategic standpoint,” said Hanson. “I went out fast to send a message early on that sticking with me was going to hurt. After breaking off from the pack with quite a large gap, I just finished it in smooth and relaxed.”

The second-place finisher had a time of 18:28.6, and he was followed by Gillett’s Evan Peterson (18:29.2). Riley Engebretsen (19:19.1) claimed sixth place.

The Suring girls team placed fourth, led by Olivia Noack’s fourth-place finish in 21:57.6.

“Honestly, I went out there and did what I do best. This race that I had tonight definitely boosted my confidence,” said Noack. “I felt super strong and determined from the start and throughout the entire race. I didn’t have the urge to stop, knew it was conference and I wanted that top-five spot once again so I didn’t give up — it’s all about how bad you want it.”

Chantelle VandenElzen (24:36.4) placed 15th for the Eagles, while Hailey Thomson (24:53.3) was 17th. Georgia Gerndt (25:40.1) and Samantha Seibert (26:51.8) rounded out the team, taking 20th and 24th, respectively.

The Lena/St. Thomas Aquinas Academy boys co-op team took third place. Max Beyer led the way with a ninth-place finish in 20:13.9.

Dylan Comins (20:39.9) came in 11th, while Reed Hosking (21:13.4) was 13th. Luke Misco (23:15.1) and Franky Umentum (29:23.1) were the team’s other two runners, finishing 17th and 18th, respectively.

The Lena/STAA girls didn’t have enough runners to qualify for a team score. Kennedy Marquardt (24:10.1) led the way with a 12th-place finish.

Megan Shallow (28:01.1), Ruth Alberts (31:21.4) and Samara VanArk (35:19.5) were the other three co-op runners, taking 26th, 27th and 29th, respectively.

Girls team scores: 1. Gillett 26; 2. Coleman 58; 3. Crivitz 67; 4. Suring 72.

Boys team scores: 1. Coleman 29; 2. Crivitz 38; 3. Lena/STAA 53.

Girls all-conference finishers — first team: Gillett’s Sylvia Hansen, Carleigh Kaczmarek, Ryann Wagner; Suring’s Olivia Noack; second team: Gillett’s Megan Wagner.

Boys all-conference finishers — first team: Gillett’s Derek Hanson, Evan Peterson; second team: Gillett’s Riley Engebretsen; Lena/STAA’s Max Beyer.

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