Cross country: Berger sets new school record at Nightfall Classic

Under the lights on a cool October evening this past Friday, junior Emily Berger set the school record for girls’ cross country at the Nightfall Classic in Lake Mills. Her time of 18:39.5 in the 5k race bested the previous school record, set by Reagan Hoopes in 2018, by two seconds.

“It was really for a fun race. It was an energetic environment,” said Berger, after competing in her first ever cross country race at night. “The whole race I was just excited to see how we would do as a team because this race wasn’t like anything we’ve done before. I was very excited to see my time when I finished and was pleased that all the hard work that I put in during the offseason is finally paying off.”

For all the Warrior runners, it was the first time they had ever run a cross country race at night.

The course was lit up with spotlights in some places and marked with strands of strung up Christmas lights in others.

The weather, in the upper 50s, was also perfect for racing. The spectator-friendly course allowed for cheering throughout the race. Given how the teams finished, the runners loved racing under the lights. “Many runners said that this was their favorite meet of the year,” said co-captain Cole Lampe.

The girls easily won the meet, with nine runners placing in top 17 in a field of more than 160 runners. Berger took second, while Cianna Wipperfurth placed third. Megan Collins (19:45) and Emeline Shefchik (19:57) broke 20 minutes for the first time, placing them 10th and 12th on Waunakee’s all-time fastest list. Rachel Gregorich, Amira Endres, Jillian Borgelt, Keeley Stephens and Mackenzie Stephens also medaled with their top 20 finishes.

“Our girls walked away with many personal bests, a first-place team finish, and seven runners under 20:30,” said co-captain Emiline Shefchik of the girls’ strong performance. “As a captain it is amazing to see, because I love this team and I have seen them work so hard all season.”

The Warrior boys also had a strong showing. “The festivities brought on by the glowing lights were a great contributing factor to our team’s success,” said Lampe. “Eight boys ran personal bests and our top 5 ran under 18 minutes for the first time all year.”

Senior Cooper Ubert led the boys with a time of 17:01, placing 18th out of 250 runners in the boys race. Simon Marx (17:34), Tyler Niermeyer (17:51), Carson Jennerjohn (17:51) and Quinn Pfeiffer (17:55) joined Ubert in running under 18 minutes at the race.

The Warrior runners next race will be the conference championship at Beaver Dam on Oct. 19.