“Last week was hard with the rain and having two of our meets cancelled (in Long Prairie and in Spicer),” stated Head Coach Robert Bosma.  “After a strong showing in Wadena (placing 5th), it was tough to mentally prepare for meets and then have an in-door practice. The runners were excited that they finally got to compete again.  The heat was brutal and it really affected the runners. Many were disappointed with their time, but I thought it was a great showing of their mental toughness. Physically, most were spent and we had one girl (Lily Evavold, soph.) who had to drop out of the race. Most spectators don’t realize the toll it takes on the body to perform in conditions like that. But, many of the runners were able to dig deep and compete with others at the end of the race. As a coach, I love seeing my team battle when it’s tough. This team continues to run through adversity and they are really improving with the mental side of the sport.

Melrose won the boys’ meet with 43 points and Litchfield was second with 46.  Benson/K-M-S was third (580), followed by Paynesville (103), Brandon-Evansville (106) and Minnewaska Area (170).  Sophomores Abram Fossel (19:45.7), Wesley Siira (19:58.9) and Jayden Hoidahl (20:47.3) finished eleventh, seventeenth and twenty-fourth, respectively.  Freshman Logan Froemming was 26th (21:10.1) and ssenior Blake Merrit was 28th (21:12.6).  Sophomore Titus Fuller (23:24.6) was 34th and freshman Kian Gackle (25:48.0) finished 38th.

“I really like how Abram was able to get out and run with the lead pack,” observed Coach Bosma. “He had a strong race. He likes turns in races and Melrose is a curvy course that suited him well. He definitely earned the medal last night.  Blake and Titus both have been struggling this year with their kick at the end and both had strong finishes. Blake caught one Melrose runner from behind and almost got another. Though Titus wasn’t battling a runner, he was battling the clock and was one of the few runners to PR for us.”

Brandon-Evansville had two girls running, freshman Emma Erickson (35:01.6) finished 55th and senior Sophia Martin (35:33.2) was 56th. Minnewaska Area won the team title with 48 points and Melrose was second with 65.

Full results can be found at https://www.raceberryjam.com/today.html.