The cross country season coming into its final weeks marks the team taking its customary, short drive to the Watertown-Mayer Invitational. Runners love falls day like this, cooler temps, slight clouds and dryer air. The two-loop course offers great spectating, with runners competing in and along a magnificent burnt red, orange and yellow backdrop. 

The start of the boys varsity race sent runners from the five teams across a football practice field then quickly into the woods surrounding the high school, later emerging on the other side. Spectators lined the downhill, straight section, waiting to see who would appear first. Mound Westonka senior Lance Nemecek was the first spotted, with senior Josh Engesser in pursuit. There was no change in the lead as competitors traversed and completed the first lap. The final race to the finish had Nemecek extending his lead over his teammate and sprinting to cross the line in first place.

Fun White Hawks cross country trivia tidbit: Nemecek has won this race as a middle schooler, a JV runner and as a varsity athlete to finish out his senior year.

This year, Nemecek delivered a 17:03 for the victory, Engesser took second place in 17:44 and junior Jacob Trost took third in with a PR of 17:57. Sophomore Charlie Paul was right behind in fifth with a 18:05, and senior Max Epsky completed in ninth with a 18:29. The White Hawks boys were also victorious in the team standing.

The MWHS girls varsity followed the same course, with junior Laura Sunnaborg and eighth-grader Emma Andrev occupying positions 2 and 3 for the entirety of the race. The final results had Sunnaborg in second place with a 20:37, followed by Andrev in third with a 20:56, then came ninth-grader Audrey Kirscht in fourth with 21:33, senior Allie Soule in fifth with a 21:36, followed by ninth-grader Brooke Garlock in ninth with a 21:51. The White Hawks girls team earned yet another first-place win.

Great effort by the JV teams had eighth-grader Bette Mae Grogan in first with 22:25 and sophomore Cassie Nemecek in third with a 23:32. On the boys side, junior Ethan Garlock was third with a 19:26, and senior Wyatt Carlson was fourth with a 19:43. Eighth-grader Gavin Thelen took first with a 12:11, and eighth-grader Luke Sunnarborg was second with 12:40 in boys middle school race. Seventh-grader Ellie Cordahl was first on the girls side with 14:09, and seventh-grader Claire Buetow was second with 16:42.

The White Hawks cross country team traveled to Otsego for the Thundering Royal Elk Meet on October 7.  The question of the day was how would the team perform against a stacked, 14-team field from across the Metro. The course was a flat; two loops around and through a city park and its recreational fields. Typically, course profiles include hills and turns, and given the relatively flat course with mild temperatures and clouds, spectators were sure to witness exciting performances.

The White Hawk girls have been having a fantastic season and would be challenged - so much so, that jumping ahead to the awards ceremony, a tie was announced. To determine a winner the officials needed to look at the placement of the sixth team runner.  Typically, a varsity team runs seven team members, and the first five score. This year, as per the rules, the placement of the sixth runner would break the tie. Sophomore Mari Engesser’s determination and push to the finish put the White Hawks in the top spot. Individual performances included Laura Sunnaborg in ninth with a 20:20, Emma Andrev in 11th in a 20:42, Audrey Kirscht in 20th with 21:23, Allison Soule in 21st in 21:47, Sophia Engesser in 23rd in 21:47, Mari Engesser in 27th in 22:00,  Brooke Garlock in 28th with 22:30, Gabby Calahan in 31st in 22:07, and Cassie Nemecek completed the field in 23:09

The boys race delivered blistering times with many Division AAA schools in the field. Lance Nemecek fought courageously for eighth place overall with a 17:31, followed by Josh Engesser in 12th with a 17:51. Then came Jacob Trost in 22nd in 18:12, Charlie Paul in 25th in 18:17 and Max Epsky in 38th with a 18:45 to round out the point scores.

Bette Mae Grogan provided the White Hawks with another reason to celebrate, winning the girls JV race by over a minute, finishing in 22:34. The White Hawks JV boys had two Top 20 finishers, with sophomore Mattthew Von Edeskuty taking 15th in 20:05 and eighth-grader Gavin Thelen with a PR, finishing the 5K in 20:25.        

The middle school boys continued their unbeaten streak, handily beating the larger schools with a team total of 22. Eighth-grader Liam Grant notched another middle school first place with a time of 9:27 on the 2,500-meter course. The next three Westonka runners had an extremely tight finish, sprinting along with two other competitors and all crossing the line within three seconds of each other.  Placing third through fifth were seventh-graders Drew Carlson and Owen Trost, and eighth-grader Luke Sunnarborg.  Seventh-grader Brendan Rashleger added the final Top 10 score for the White Hawks, claiming 10th.  Seventh-grader Ellie Cordahl ran a nice race for the middle school girls, earning second place with a time of 11:20.

Next up for the White Hawks is the Wright County West Conference Meet on Tuesday, October 19 in Jordan, and the Section 6AA Meet October 28 in Dassel.