The Westonka White Hawks braved a steady rain and cool temperatures in the 40s at the Wright County Conference Championship at Litchfield Golf Course on October 14. Though the rain lasted nearly the entire day, the showers and crisp air created surprisingly fast racing conditions. The White Hawks’ resilience and depth were on full display, with several athletes setting personal bests.

Head Coach Butch Humbert called it “a meet to remember,” noting, “A few historic firsts highlighted our Conference Championship Meet. On the weather front, it was the first time I can ever remember it raining from just after we got on the bus until just before our bus returned to WHS. Luckily, the 7+ straight hours of rain was light to moderate and helped, along with perfect temps, to create great racing weather.”

The Westonka girls varsity finished 2nd overall, led by a record-setting run from junior Sophia Engesser, whose 18:56 performance not only earned her All-Conference honors but also set a new school record for the girls 5K. She was joined in the All-Conference ranks by 7th-grader Raelyn Moslander (5th, 19:36) and freshman Hadley Hoag (9th, 19:46), both continuing their strong seasons. Freshman Lydia Engesser finished 18th in 20:38, earning Honorable Mention All-Conference, while junior Anna Regenold was just 0.1 seconds shy of that honor, placing 19th in the same time. Ella Pozar (20:40, 20th) and Eva Savstrom (21:56, 26th) rounded out the varsity lineup.

On the boys’ side, the White Hawks varsity placed 4th overall in a highly competitive field won by Delano. Juniors Brendan Rashleger (20th, 18:02) and Luke Sunnarborg (21st, 18:11) narrowly missed Honorable Mention All-Conference honors. Sophomore Gabe Lundgren (23rd, 18:27), junior Owen Trost (25th, 18:28), junior Levi Hays (26th, 18:31), sophomore Jacob Chilson (28th, 18:43), and junior Drew Carlson (32nd, 18:58) showed strong pack running, demonstrating the team’s balance and consistency.

The future looks bright for Westonka as well. Peter Berg (8th grade) captured the Middle School Boys title in 8:14 — his third straight victory. Olivia Petersen (7th grade) also impressed, taking 4th in the Middle School Girls race with a time of 9:39. In the JV races, freshman Kellen Mueller placed 4th (18:36) for the boys, while sophomore Elise Hays (10th) also finished 4th (22:07) for the girls — both setting new personal bests.

Coach Humbert praised the team’s overall effort, saying, “Several of our athletes had a good week and are progressing in their fitness and are set to have an excellent finish to the season. We had an amazingly high number—36—of our student-athletes set their best time for the season, and most of those were also their career PRs.”

The White Hawks now turn their focus to the Section 6AA Championship at Gale Woods Farm, one of the toughest in the state. As Coach Humbert noted, “An almost unbelievable five of the top nine boys teams in the state and three of the top six girls teams reside in our section. There will be some very strong teams and individuals not advancing to State due to our talent-laden section.”