Advertisement

Schellhorn the conference champ, four other Bulldogs medal at UIC meet

Error message

  • Warning: array_merge(): Expected parameter 1 to be an array, bool given in _simpleads_render_ajax_template() (line 133 of /home/pdccourier/www/www/sites/all/modules/simpleads/includes/simpleads.helper.inc).
  • Notice: Trying to get property 'settings' of non-object in _simpleads_adgroup_settings() (line 343 of /home/pdccourier/www/www/sites/all/modules/simpleads/includes/simpleads.helper.inc).
  • Warning: array_merge(): Expected parameter 1 to be an array, bool given in _simpleads_render_ajax_template() (line 157 of /home/pdccourier/www/www/sites/all/modules/simpleads/includes/simpleads.helper.inc).
  • Notice: Trying to access array offset on value of type null in include() (line 24 of /home/pdccourier/www/www/sites/all/modules/simpleads/templates/simpleads_ajax_call.tpl.php).

MFL MarMac runner Jacob Schellhorn didn’t let cold, windy conditions stop him from becoming the boys Upper Iowa Conference champion on Oct. 13. (Photos by Audrey Posten)

Bulldog junior Clare Grau ran a season best 21:49.6 to place seventh in the UIC meet.

Senior Will Koether and sophomore Tucker Ruff medaled with respective 11th and 12th place finishes.

Freshman Cora Keehner medaled with a 12th-place time of 22:09.9.

Junior Sawyer Keehner placed 16th, and was one of four Bulldog boys to finish within the top 20.

Freshman Mariah Moser came in 30th at the UIC meet.

Logan Ross relied on a time of 22:49.7 to place 38th.

Senior Cadence Weber rounded out the Bulldog girls runners with a 28:24.2 finish, which was good for 40th.

By Audrey Posten, Times-Register

 

MFL MarMac sophomore Jacob Schellhorn was the boys champion and four other Bulldog runners medaled at the Oct. 13 Upper Iowa Conference cross country meet at Tri City Golf Course near Luana. The results—and corresponding times—made for one of the most successful meets of the season for both the boys and girls teams. 

 

“The times are the best we’ve done all season,” said head coach Eric Koenig.

 

Schellhorn, who’d already won three meets, including MFL MarMac’s home invite at Tri City in September, turned in a time of 16:51.9. It was a good 20 seconds ahead of the second place runner.

 

Prior success was no guarantee for a win, though, especially on a cold, windy day.

 

“I knew on paper that I was supposed to win, but actually going to that level was tough,” Schellhorn said. “And knowing how cold it was going to be, it was definitely all mental. I like it warm. I hate cold. Always have.”

 

Schellhorn used the cold to his advantage, however.

 

“I knew that, if you stay out far enough, that the mental game was going to come in: ‘Oh, it’s too cold and I don’t want to go and catch him.’ That was the big thing at the beginning, to get out there and make them come and get me,” he explained.

 

Understanding the hilly Luana course was also helpful. Going downhill on the other side of the one-mile mark was where Schellhorn started to pull away from the field.

 

“Then, the back stretch was really windy, so you have to keep going or they are going to gain,” he said. “For the conditions, I thought it was a good run. Not as good as when we were here last time, but the wind had something to do with that for everybody.”

 

Even with prior knowledge of the course, there was almost no preparation for the conditions, according to Koenig.

 

“Yesterday was the first day like this,” he said. “We did come out here yesterday and ran the two-mile course to get a feel for the hills and wind.”

 

In addition to Schellhorn, senior Will Koether and sophomore Tucker Ruff also medaled with respective 11th and 12th place finishes. Koether’s time was 18:38.0 and Ruff crossed in 18:55.1. Junior Sawyer Keehner wasn’t far behind in 16th, with a time of 19:06.9, while sophomore Logan Ross relied on a 22:49.7 to place 38th.

 

The combined effort propelled the Bulldogs to second place as a team, their best finish this season. MFL MarMac totaled 62 points, behind only Clayton Ridge with 57 and just ahead of the 64 by NFV. In all, only 20 points separated the first through fifth place teams, as Postville scored 74 and South Winn 77.

 

In the girls race, Bulldog junior Clare Grau ran a season best 21:49.6 to place seventh. Koenig praised Grau’s performance, which he said was reminiscent of her state-qualifying meet as a freshman.

 

“I reminded Clare that, the day she qualified for state, this is what the weather was like,” Koenig said. 

 

He’s also seen Grau continue to progress this season.

 

“The temperature helps, but every meet is a step forward. That’s reminiscent of her freshman year, where she worked her way up,” he added.

 

Freshman Cora Keehner also medaled with a 12th-place time of 22:09.9, and sophomore Evelyn Ruff cruised to 18th with a 23:14.9. Freshman Mariah Moser came in 30th and junior Kaylee Nuehring 32nd with respective times of 24:53 and 25:03.4. Senior Cadence Weber rounded out the Bulldog runners with a 28:24.2 finish, which was good for 40th.

 

MFL MarMac was fourth as a team with 92 points. The top spot went to South Winneshiek at 32, then North Fayette Valley with 50 and Central with 69.

 

Next up for both the boys and girls teams is the Class 1A state qualifying meet at Fillmore Fairways Country Club in Cascade on Thursday, Oct. 20. The meet will begin at 4 p.m.

 

Considering the success at conference, Koenig said cooler temperatures would be welcome. 

 

“If we can get this sort of weather again without the wind, it might be better for us,” he noted.

Rate this article: 
No votes yet