The 104th running of the WIAA State Boys Cross Country Championships and the 44th State Girls Cross Country Championships produced team and individual champions in each of the three divisions Saturday at The Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids.
Darlington won the boys Division 3 title for the sixth year in a row and for the eighth time overall. The Redbirds’ streak ties for the second-longest streak of success, bettered only by the eight titles won in succession by Milwaukee Riverside from 1913-20. They placed all five of their scoring competitors in the top 24 to compile a team score of 68. Aquinas was second with a score of 85. Sophomore David Vannucchi of Luther was the boys individual champion in Division 3 with a time of 15:59.33. The closest challenger was junior Wesley Schiek of Valley Christian, who finished the 5,000-meter course in a time of 16:05.98.
Madison West captured its eighth boys State cross country championship with a score of 130, seven fewer than runner-up Arrowhead. The Regents ran well as a team, with their top five runners all finishing 42nd or better. Arrowhead was second with 137 points. Senior Finn Gessner of Madison La Follette successfully defending his title by winning the individual title in Division 1 for the second year in a row. He cruised to a time of 15:22.13, which was more than 16 seconds faster than the next closest competitor, sophomore Drew Bosley of Homestead with a time of 15:38.76. Bosley improved on last season’s seventh-place finish.
Lakeland won its first boys cross country championship as the Thunderbirds gained possession of the Division 2 gold trophy. Four of their runners finished in the top 22 to lead the team to victory. Valders placed second with a score of 112. Senior Luke Bailey of Xavier won the individual title with a time of 15:44.80 after his third-place standing last season. Clark Otte of Sheboygan Falls placed second with a time of 15:56.46 after finishing sixth a year ago.
Sun Prairie captured the girls Division 1 championship with a five-runner score of 82. Four of the seven Cardinal runners finished in the top 16 overall. It’s the first cross country title for Sun Prairie. Arrowhead was runner-up for the second consecutive season, finishing with team score of 162. Junior Meghan Scott of Divine Savior Holy Angels captured the individual title in Division 1 after placing fourth a year ago. She completed the 5,000-meter course in a time of 18:10.46. Senior Camille Davre of Whitefish Bay, who is runner-up for the second straight year, finished with a time of 18:24.71.
East Troy won the girls Division 2 team championship for the first time in school history with all five runners finishing in the top 33. The Trojans scored 88, which was 20 points fewer than second-place Luxemburg-Casco with 108. Sophomore Dana Feyen of Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau improved on last season’s runner-up finish to capture the individual crown in Division 2. She covered the course in a time of 18:21.48. Freshman Laura Beghin of Wisconsin Dells had an impressive debut in the State Meet with a second-place time of 18:34.14.
Darlington won it’s first State girls cross country championship to give the school the sweep in Division 3 after the boys repeated as champions earlier in the day. The Redbirds had three runners finish in the top 11 to pace the team to a score of 89. Three-time defending champion Lourdes Academy finished second with a score of 93. Senior Noelle Maire of Belleville was the girls individual champion in Division 3. After placing fifth the past two seasons, she wins the title in a time of 19:12.79. Sophomore Lydia Murphy of Lancaster moved up to second this year after placing seventh in 2015. She turned in a time of 19:26.98.
For complete results, access the WIAA website:
Boys Results
Division 3 Boys Results: Team | Individual
Division 2 Boys Results: Team | Individual
Division 1 Boys Results: Team | Individual
Girls Results
Division 3 Girls Results: Team | Individual
Division 2 Girls Results: Team | Individual
Division 1 Girls Results: Team | Individual