By Mike Moore
Sports Correspondent
Within the middle-of-the-pack finish at the Dana Waddell Invitational, some encouraging trends emerged for the Catholic Central cross country team.
The boys finished sixth in a 12-team field, while the girls took seventh out of 11 schools. The 5-kilometer race was held on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at McCarthy Park in Marshall, a Dane County village northeast of Madison.
Sam Joski placed highest among the Hilltopper runners, finishing seventh out of 85 participants. The senior’s time of 17:07 came in less than a minute behind individual winner Thomas Schultz of Darlington.
What also stood out to Catholic Central coach Keith Mulhollon were the performances by junior Jack Horner and sophomore Josh Muellenbach. They finished with times of 19:56 and 21:58, respectively, as the team’s fifth and sixth runners.
“Both are new to the sport and have added a final dimension to the team that will help make them a factor late in the season,” Mulhollon said.
In the girls’ race, Kourtney Mulhollon paced Catholic Central with an 18th-place finish in 21:28. Kathleen Straube and Cassie Reesman also made the top 30.
That experienced trio — all of them are now seniors — has served as a key component of the squad for the past three seasons.
“(They) continue to push those top spots and have become a strong group that
makes the Hilltoppers a factor in Division 3,” Keith Mulhollon said.
He’s equally encouraged by the progress of sophomore Kelly Aldrich (22:52) and junior Brianna Martin (24:58). Both ran personal best times at the Dana Waddell meet.
“Martin had the race of her cross country career so far,” Mulhollon said. “She continues to improve, and it’s fun to watch as a coach.”
Depth is valuable in cross country. Team scores in the invitational were calculated by adding up the top five runners’ individual placements.
The meet affirmed the latest rankings put out by the Wisconsin Cross Country Coaches Association. The top-ranked Division 3 schools won both the boys and girls events in Marshall.
Darlington won the boys’ event with 37 points, placing five runners in the top 12. The Hilltoppers had 187 points, as junior Gavin Clayton and seniors Jake LaForest and Gavin Foote also finished in the top 50.
The top spot in the girls’ competition went to Westby, which totaled 31 points. Catholic Central’s five girls combined for 170. Sophomore Alexis Reesman was unable to compete in the meet.
Five other girls and two other boys competed in a junior varsity race for the Hilltoppers. Overall, Mulhollon said the meet went well for the team.
“It’s still early in the season, and we look to continue to improve,” he said.
Catholic Central next competes much closer to home, in the Chocolate City Invitational. Burlington High School hosts the event on Saturday, Oct. 4.
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