Bears Turn in Strong Performances at Melrose Meet

by Coach Kenny Miller

The Bertha-Hewitt Cross Country teams traveled to Melrose on Tuesday, September 16, where warm weather greeted the runners on a relatively flat and fast course.

The Junior High boys set the tone early, with Nolan Rach once again claiming victory on the 3200-meter course, crossing the line in 11:54.5. Teammate Vance Lockwood wasn’t far behind, earning second place with a strong time of 12:06.6. Rounding out the Bears’ scoring, Ambrose Heinze placed 24th (14:55.3), followed by Jace Fitzlaff in 35th (16:06.0) and Owen Schultz in 42nd (18:10.7).  In the team standings, Melrose claimed the title with 52 points, followed by New London-Spicer (59), Sauk Centre (66), Bertha-Hewitt (78), and Minnewaska (92).

In the girls’ race, Miette Hansel led the Bears with an impressive top-ten finish, clocking 20:59.2 to place 9th overall. She was followed by McKayla Kappahahn, who secured the team’s second spot with a 35th-place finish in 23:45.5, and Aulani Johnson, who continues to work hard, placed 43rd in 24:41.1. The Bears continue to look forward to the return of Kendra Miller, who is sidelined with an injury but hopes to rejoin the team in two weeks...

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