Make it three.
The Oconto Falls High School boys cross-country team earned its third consecutive Bay Conference title at the conference meet Thursday in Shawano.
The boys, led by second-place finisher Mike Friedman, finished with 48 points — the lowest score of the season for the Panthers — to lead the eight-team field. Shawano (65) took second and Hortonville (93) took third.
Paced by Friedman clocking in at 16 minutes, 51 seconds, all of the Oconto Falls boys finished in the top 20. Liam Spillane was sixth (17:20) and James Malcheski ninth (17:24).
“The guys behind me have a real good pack and they’ve been improving every single race this year,” Friedman said. “They’ve been working really hard. They’re just a great group of guys and they’re fun to be around.”
Friedman battled Seymour’s Justin Skinkis for most of the race. After keeping even with him through the first mile, Friedman fell behind and finished 14 seconds after Skinkis.
“I feel pretty good about it,” Friedman said. “My arms got pretty tired toward the end. My arms haven’t been tired all year. Today they did, I don’t know why.”
The weather may have played a factor. The race was run with clear skies, but a chilling wind might have been a drag on some runners.
In the girls race, Bailey Wolf led the Panthers, finishing in 15:51 to take eighth.
The girls finished ninth as a team. Hortonville won the the race followed by Luxemburg-Casco. Luxemburg-Casco’s Lisa Baeten won the girls race, finishing in 14:52.
Results
Boys
Teams: 1. Oconto Falls (48), 2. Shawano (65), 3. Hortonville (93), 4. Luxemburg-Casco (106), 5. New London (109), 6. Seymour (112), 7. Denmark (174), 8. West De Pere (181)
Oconto Falls: 2. Mike Friedman, 16:51; 6. Liam Spillane, 17:20; 9. James Malcheski, 17:24; 12. Alex Young, 17:32; 19. Michael Fifield, 17:46
Girls
Teams: 1. Hortonville (40), 2. Luxemburg-Casco (49), 3. West De Pere (101), 4. Shawano (125), 5. Denmark (137), 6. New London (138), 7. Seymour (160), 8. Marinette (172), 9. Oconto Falls (210)
Oconto Falls: 8. Bailey Wolf, 15:51; 47. Kali Erickson, 18:04; 50. Jaclyn Erickson, 18:10; 52. Hanna Kopczynski, 18:12; 53. Megan Loberger, 18:15
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