Phillips runners take third at big Rice Lake Invite

The Phillips High School varsity boys and girls cross country teams each placed third at a huge Rice Lake Invitational meet with more than 25 schools competing at the UW-Eau Claire-Barron County campus on Sept. 17, 2024.

VARSITY GIRLS

The Phillips varsity girls finished third overall in the 5,000 meter run behind Bloomer in first and Amery in second. There were 24 schools competing.

Phillips junior Leah Harper placed fifth in the race, with a time of 20:00.90. Bloomer sophomore Ciara Hartman was first with 17:47.80, followed by Amery freshman Macie Boe with 19:36.90, and two more Bloomer sophomores, Briella Hartman with 19:46.60 and Aliya Hartman with 19:53.10.

Other Phillips runners among the 173 total runners in the field included senior Sarah Knaack in 19th, sophomore Addie Gabay in 28th, sophomore Ruby McCormick in 47th, senior Caitlin Pesko in 52nd, freshman Tana Henderson in 56th, senior Jaycee Pomeroy in 86th.

VARSITY BOYS

The Phillips varsity boys placed third in the 5,000 meter run behind Hudson in first and Osceola in second. There were 27 schools competing.

Phillips junior Gavin Esterholm placed fifth with a time of 16:33.10. Bloomer junior Seth Rogge was first with 16:06.30, followed by Ladysmith senior Gavin Stewart with 16:16.80, Solon Springs/Northwood senior Isaac Dickenson with 16:27.60, and Hudson sophomore Ryan Keller with 16:28.90.

Other Phillips runners among the 206 total runners included senior James Vollendorf in 21st, junior Logan Sokolowski in 42nd, junior Evan Johnson in 50th, senior Arlo Berens in 58th, junior Spencer Henney in 69th, and freshman Josh Edwards in 72nd.

JV GIRLS

The junior varsity girls had Superiorin first, followed by St. Croix Central, and Ashland. Phillips was shorthanded and did not have enough individual runners to rank as a team at the meet.

The top Phillips runners was sophomore Sailor Madsen in 12th with 25:09.30, and freshman Trinity Smith in 14th with 25:44.30. The other Phillips runners included junior Suzanne Ludwig in 22nd, sophomore Katelyn Kurth in 30th.

JV BOYS

The Phillips junior varsity boys team placed third among 12 schools in the 5,000 meter run. Hudson placed first, followed by Northwestern.

The top Phillips runners among the 138 runners in the field were freshman Nick Pesko with a time of 20:05.70, and sophomore Steven Bredemann with 20:25.60. Other Phillips runners included freshman Finn McCardle in 19th, senior Christian Benson in 33rd, senior Ty Henderson in 43rd, sophomore Emmet Knudson in 87th, and freshman Christian Preston in 130th.