The Minnewaska cross-country teams opened up the season at the Morris Area Invitational last Tuesday.  The meet had been set for last Monday but was pushed back a day due to rain.

The Laker girls earned second place behind NLS, while the boys finished fifth in a meet won by Sauk Centre.

Next up for the Lakers is the Wadena-DC Invitational, set for Tuesday, Sept. 3, followed by the LPGE Invitational, Monday, Sept. 9.

This year’s Minnewaska Area girls cross-country roster includes juniors Lauryn Ankeny, Piper Citrowske-Lee, Grace Herfindahl and Aubrey Stark; sophomore Sophia Wallin; ninth-graders Sydney Ankeny and Ella Larson; and eighth-graders Jillian Deutsch, Maia Larson and Nori Song, while the boys cross-country roster includes seniors Luke Hoffmann, Ryan Koehntop, Ian Mills, Zach Palmer and Chase Wacker; juniors Carter Dinsmore and Tayte Wasiloski; ninth-grader Rylan Tank; eighth-graders Deitrich Reidenbach and Jase Ritter; and seventh-grader Caden Hawkins.

Morris Invitational

Lauryn Ankeny, Nori Song and Ian Mills led the Lakers at the opening meet at Morris Area last Tuesday afternoon. The Laker girls placed second out of eight complete girls’ teams, while the Minnewaska boys placed fifth.

In the girls race, all nine of the Laker varsity girls finished in the top 30 out of 60 racers and all nine are juniors or younger.   NLS edged Minnewaska for the girls’ team title, 26-39.

Junior Lauryn Ankeny placed fourth with a time of 21:21, while eighth-grader Nori Song earned fifth only three seconds behind.

Eighth-grader Maia Larson was next for the Lakers in 10th place with a time of 22:00, while eighth-grader Jillian Deutsch placed 11th (22:03) and junior Piper Citrowske-Lee earned 14th with a time of 22:15.

The Lakers will have a very balanced team this year as ninth-grader Sydney Ankeny placed 18th (22:26), sophomore Sophia Wallin was 21st (23:16), ninth-grader Ella Larson was 26th (23:49) and junior Aubrey Stark placed 30th (24:06).

Winning the girls’ race was Kyla Vick, of NLS, who had a time of 20:38 to edge her teammate by 12 seconds for the individual title.

•  In the boys competition, Sauk Centre’s Jacob Drevlow won the 65-person race with a time of 16:33 and also helped the Mainstreeters win the team title with 34 points.

LQP-DB placed second with 78 points, followed by NLS (87), Melrose (91), Minnewaska Area (96) and Paynesville-BBE (134).

Leading the way for the Lakers was senior Ian Mills, who placed sixth with a time of 17:58.

Senior Zach Palmer was next in 15th place with a time of 18:47, while senior Luke Hoffmann placed 22nd (19:29) and senior Ryan Koehntop was 41st (21:18).

Also racing for the Lakers were ninth-grader Rylan Tank in 47th (21:36), junior Carter Dinsmore in 51st place (21:51) and senior Chase Wacker in 63rd (24:11).

•  In the boys JV race of 2,450 meters, NLS’ Kellon Hanson won with a time of 9:25, while Minnewaska’s Tayte Wasiloski was 27th with a time of 10:52.

Grace Herfindahl was the only Laker to run in the girls’ JV race.  She placed 27th overall with a time of 13:38.  Three NLS runners placed first through third, including Hazel Vetsch, who won with a time of 10:44.

•  In the boys 7th grade race, Caden Hawkins of the Lakers placed fourth (time not available) in a race won by Sauk Centre’s Tucker Cossette, while in the 7th grade girls race, Border West’s Kenley Homan won with a time of 11:46 and there were no Waska runners.

•  In the 8th grade race, Minnewaska Area had the top two finishers as Dietrich Reidenbach was first with a time of 9:19 and Jase Ritter was second in 9:23 over 2,450 meters.  In the girls’ 8th grade race, Border West’s Karissa Anderson won the 6-person race which did not include any Minnewaska racers.

at Morris Area Invite

Girls varsity team results:  (1) NLS 26  (2) Minnewaska 39  (3) Sauk Centre 110  (4) Paynesville-BBE 123  (5) LQP-DB 128  (6) WCA 138  (7) Melrose 157  (8) Morris Area 207 . . . Border West incomplete

Girls top five:  (1) Kyla Vick, NLS 20:38  (2) Stella Moline, NLS 20:50  (3) Julia Schmidt, BW 20:57  (4) Lauryn Ankeny, Min 21:21  (5) Nori Song, Min 21:24

Minnewaska Area times:   (4) Lauryn Ankeny 21:21  (5) Nori Song 21:24  (10) Maia Larson 22:00  (11) Jillian Deutsch 22:03  (14) Piper Citrowske-Lee 22:15  (18) Sydney Ankeny 22:26  (21) Sophia Wallin 23:16    (26) Ella Larson 23:49  (30) Aubrey Stark 24:06 . . . (60 total runners)

Boys varsity team results:  (1) Sauk Centre 34  (2) LQP-DB 78  (3) NLS 87  (4) Melrose 91  (5) Minnewaska Area 96  (6) Paynesville-BBE 134 . . . Osakis, WCA incomplete

Boys top five:  (1) Jacob Drevlow, SC 16:33  (2) Carter Kjesbo, WCA 16:58  (3) Zachary Bruder, Osakis 17:03  (4) Logan Wiehoff, SC 17:43  (5) Taylor Nelson, Pay 17:57  (6) Ian Mills, Min 17:58

Minnewaska Area times:   (6) Ian Mills 17:58  (15) Zach Palmer 18:47  (22) Luke Hoffmann 19:29  (41) Ryan Koehntop 21:18  (47) Rylan Tank 21:36  (51) Carter Dinsmore 21:51  (63) Chase Wacker 24:11 . . . (65 total runners)